Evangelion: Wreckage
by Norsehound
Summary: Re-take on the events of Evangelion, and a rebuild of an earlier work. Shinji arrives after the first two angel attacks, responding to summons from his parents to pilot Eva. Yui and Kyoko live in this re-telling of events, but be careful what you wish for.
1. Chapter 1: The First Day

**EVANGELION: WRECKAGE (Rebuild)**

* * *

**BOOK I - SPIRIT**

**I. THE FIRST DAY**

One day out of the blue, Shinji Ikari was summoned.

"Summoned"... quite a term. But the more Shinji thought about it, the more the poetic description seemed to fit what as happening to him. Summoning was for spirits being dragged up from the underworld to serve the bidding of the summoner. It was also said for fearful underlings brought before the King, to answer for some need of the ruler. Both sentiments felt correct.

Before the summoning life couldn't be described as anything other than mundane, if a bit disappointing. He lived with his mother's brother and his wife. He wasn't neglected or mistreated in any way, only treated 'separately'. His uncle didn't have kids and didn't want any, but seemed tolerant enough of Shinji's presence. Still, they made it clear in their actions that he wasn't their child and would never be considered as such.

Shinji had come to accept this.

The only regret he had was not knowing why his parents had left him here. When he asked, his guardians gave him vague answers: they worked for the government, or were employed in some kind of special project, overseas, or just 'out'. Shinji was smart enough to know his guardians never gave him a straight answer, likely because they didn't even know.

Shinji only had sparse moments of both of them. Of his mother he remembered vague comfort- she had been in his life, happy and pleasant... until gradually that changed. He would see her less and less, until there were days only with His Father.

In Shinji's mind, Gendo had become an impassible, cold, unaffected barrier. Shinji could only remember his coldness, his aloofness, his directness. It was him that delivered Shinji to his mother's older brother, and he was the last of his parents Shinji had seen. Since then, he had come to fear meeting his father again... that impassive facade.

Of course, Shinji's aunt and uncle opened all of the mail destined for him, so they knew before Shinji did that he was being summoned to Hakone. Shinji learned for himself merely hours before his bags had been packed and he was sent on his way.

Shinji was still recovering from that shock a day later on the second leg of the train ride. His summoning was all he had to think about on the train ride to Hakone, which he discovered now had a new name: Tokyo-3. The rest of his possessions would follow him once he had mailed his aunt and uncle his new address. Then, he imagined, they'd take that long-desired trip to America... now that they were unburdened.

* * *

The train arrived on time. Stepping out of the car, he studied the only reference given to him of what he should do when he arrived. It was a single polaroid photograph of a woman with short-cropped blond hair and a mole under her right eye. "I'll meet you at the station," said the hand-scrawled note on the photograph, "Be a good boy and be prompt. - R. Akagi."

This was all very strange to Shinji, but he had no choice but to deal with it. He waved the polarioid absently as he walked away from the train car and approached the street turn-out, eyes scanning the people to look for anyone who was blond. It could have been worse though, he could have met his Father here.

He almost passed R. Akagi until he did a double take. "Ah-aum!" He announced, catching her attention.

She had been standing on the opposite side of an American-made car. "Shinji?" She said, "I'm Doctor Ritsuko Akagi. I work for your father."

Shinji's fingers tightened on the Polaroid he held at the mention, and thought, of his father. "I... I see." Shinji replied and looked away.

Doctor Akagi rounded the front of the car to approach Shinji, not reacting to his hesitance. "Come with me, I'll take you to the base."

That brought up Shinji's face. "The base?"

"Yes, where your parents work." Ritsuko replied.

Shinji looked down absently. Yes, it was here. Finally. "O-ohkay..."

* * *

The drive was quiet for the first ten minutes while Doctor Akagi navigated the city. Finally, she broke the ice. "Are you nervous?"

Shinji swallowed. "Y-Yes..."

"Understandable." Ritsuko replied, "Its been many years since you have seen your parents, and you don't know what to expect."

Shinji had been twiddling his thumbs as he sat in the passenger seat. Moved by her statement, he finally asked, "W-What are my parents like?"

Ritsuko smirked as she pulled up to a vehicle entrance of some kind. "Well," She said, "Your parents are both very professional. Your father is highly admired- and highly feared around the base."

"Feared?" Shinji asked.

"Oh yes." Ritsuko replied, "Part of it is the position, part of it is his attitude. He's one of the most serious men I've met in my life."

"O-Oh..." Shinji replied. He swallowed. "And... and my mom?"

"She is also fairly dedicated to her work." Ritsuko replied, "And one of the most professional women I've ever met."

Shinji nodded and bowed his head a degree. He had expected as much, given that they had left Shinji behind years ago. He had hoped, perhaps, something had changed. "Do you know why my Father wanted me to come here?"

Ritsuko glanced in the rear-view mirror and pulled the car forward a little while they waited for the entrance to clear. "I'm not at liberty to say yet." Ritsuko replied, "You have to see a few things first. What I can say is that it's something only you, Shinji, can do."

Shinji winced as he tried to think of what it was he could do. "Is... my father hurt?"

Ritsuko laughed. "No, it's not a medical emergency like that. One moment," She pulled the car up another space, grabbed a handbag and fished into it with her fingers. She presented a card to Shinji. "Could you please enter that into the machine just outside your window?"

Shinji took the card and looked at it. It was an identification card, and Shinji could read her title as he glanced at her card. NERV TECHNICAL DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS. The window was already rolling down, allowing Shinji to push in the card and then withdraw it as the machine instructed. It beeped an affirmative, and the gate before them opened.

"Thank you." Ritsuko replied after Shinji handed the identification card back to her.

In the moment they drove inside Shinji realized they weren't entering a parking garage. Eyes wide, he looked around. "Where are we-?"

He was cut off as heavy clamps clapped around the car's tires. "What?!"

"Relax," Ritsuko replied as she put away her identification card, "This is normal Shinji. You'll see in a moment."

Shinji settled down, a little perturbed that he wasn't getting straight answers. No answer on his father, no answer on where they were even going. At that moment the car jolted, and Shinji could hear the sounds of squealing rails. He turned to Ritsuko. "We're on a train?"

"Of sorts." Ritsuko replied and nodded out the passenger window. "Look out there."

Shinji's timing was perfect. He turned his head and as he did, the darkness of the tunnel superstructure gave away to reveal the most marvelous landscape Shinji had ever seen. "Woa!" He said, pressing his face up against the glass of Ritsuko's car. "A Geofront! A real Geofront!"

Laid out in miniature at the bottom of a dome enclosure was a landscape that could have been a model for a futuristic secluded base. Surrounded by miles of parkland were a few select structures, including a massive pyramid with some logo at the apex Shinji couldn't make out.

"I knew you would be impressed." Ritsuko replied, "This is our headquarters, NERV Primary. This is where your parents work."

Shinji didn't know what to think. His parents worked in an _underground base_? It was something straight out of a spy film. But... what did they do here?

* * *

Shinji admired the grounds all the way down. Five minutes later, beyond another security checkpoint, Ritsuko parked her car in a full garage located under the base floor.

Shinji followed Ritsuko through a confusing maze of corridors for five minutes before he asked, "A-Are you taking me to my parents?"

"Yes." Ritsuko replied.

Shinji didn't ask any more questions after that as he tried to gather his feelings to prepare for it. Ritsuko had given him little reassurance to help.

He was so lost in his thinking he didn't realize anything about his surroundings until he realized he was standing in a dark room. The lone doorway that brought him in here slowly closed. "Wait, what?"

The door closed with a reverberating slam. It was quiet for a moment after that.

"It-It's dark." Shinji said, partially to hear the echo in the room.

Suddenly light exploded into existence. Shinji yelped and shielded his eyes to let them adjust. Opening them, he fell backward on the floor. His backpack spilled open, a lone pen rolled away and disappeared over the railing separating him from what the room contained.

Staring Shinji in the face was the largest animal head he had ever seen. Masked in purple with two enormous white eyes staring directly at him, the hideous head also had a massive horn jutting out of the forehead at an angle. The massive jaw was twisted in a kind of grin.

"Wh-What is this?" Shinji demanded as he stared to pick himself up.

"An experiment." An aged voice called from above. Shinji shielded his eyes from the spotlights playing down from the ceiling to look up. In a room above the massive head, a man was looking down upon him.

It had been years since Shinji had seen his father, but his reaction had not changed in that time. The hairs on the back of his neck bristled. "F-Father..."

"It's been a while, Shinji." Gendo said down to his son.

Shinji looked from his father to the machine. Standing now, he took a step towards it as he tried to decipher what it is. "What is this thing?"

Another voice spoke from above. "Ultimate All-purpose humanoid decisive battle weapon Evangelion, test unit zero one."

Shinji looked back up. Now a woman was standing beside his father, one he also recognized... but had not seen far far longer. "M...Mother..."

He could see even from here that his mother wasn't smiling. Both of his parents were looking down on him impassively.

Shinji looked at the machine, and then back up at them. "Wh-What is this? What is going on?"

Gendo commanded, "You will pilot this machine for us, Shinji."

Shinji looked at the head and pointed as he looked up. "That? Y-You want me to pilot that?!"

"Correct." Yui called down.

Shinji looked from the figures, to the head, and then back up at his parents again as he stepped backward. "I-Is that all?" Under his breath, he added, "Aren't you happy to see me...?"

Shinji had been guessing why his parents had finally summoned him back, but all of his guesses were blown to the wind the moment he saw this. He was... was feeling numb...

Yui called back down, "Piloting will be your purpose here."

Shinji's gaze fell from his parents as they wandered the walls while he tried to think. What did this mean? Years of isolation and they called him here for... this? To be a... pilot? They didn't want him back except for...

He stumbled and fell backward again, staring at the head. He was feeling woozy from too many feelings. They wanted him... but they didn't want him.

If he said no his aunt and uncle wouldn't take him back. That much he was certain about.

As the terror of being homeless crept into his mind he started to hyperventilate.

Ritsuko, watching all of this, looked from Shinji to the Ikaris. The pair were like mannequins, staring down at their son with no affection. No love.

Ritsuko looked back down at Shinji and crouched beside him. "Shinji, you can say no if you want to."

Shinji swallowed. "What... what do I have to do?"

Gendo Ikari smirked. He turned his head a little as Yui spun and walked away from where she could view their son. Gendo watched her go, and gave one more glance down at Shinji as Doctor Akagi was helping him stand up.

Then he turned and followed his wife.

* * *

After leaving the "cage" (A term that didn't inspire much confidence with Shinji), Ritsuko escorted him to another office to settle his medical and housing paperwork.

Shinji just numbly followed Ritsuko through the halls again, trying to sort out the exchange he just had with his parents. There were no answers. The only conclusion he could come to was that they were strangers... strangers with the authority of legal guardianship over him.

No, his heart told him it wasn't that simple. He needed them. The reason he came was because he was hoping to hear something from them. Even riding down to this basement under the earth, even facing that... that thing... he wanted it all to be worth it when his parents were happy to see him.

That didn't happen.

Now he needed to figure out what to do. For now, he supposed, he would be here. Perhaps things could change.

Shinji's attention was snapped up again when Ritsuko knocked on the glass beside an open office door. "Kyoko?" Ritsuko asked aloud, "I have your new pilot."

"Bring him in." A stern voice replied.

Shinji followed Ritsuko into the large office space. It appeared very spartan and stately, with few photographs but plenty of awards and certificates. He had to do a double-take when he realized a poster wasn't showing a man... but a humanoid machine of some kind. He stopped to stare but was interrupted when the owner of the office toned, "Take a seat, Ikari."

Shinji blinked and shook his head to clear his thoughts before obediently sitting in the stuffy chair across from the woman. Ritsuko remained standing.

The woman who owned the office was foreign looking, American or European in some way, but her Japanese was fluent. She had blond hair and sharp features, which at the moment were aimed at her computer as she typed.

Ritsuko patted the back of the chair. "I'll let Kyoko take it from here Shinji. Now that you're working with us, I'll see you before too much longer."

Shinji thought over her words before he realized Ritsuko was walking away. Turning, he called, "D-Doctor!"

Ritsuko stopped by the door and looked back at him.

"Th-Thank you." Shinji replied.

Ritsuko smiled. "My, pleasure Shinji."

She left.

"Shinji Ikari, 14 years old." The woman said at the computer. Shinji spun around and adjusted his posture. He had encountered sticklers before, and this woman's intonation suggested she commanded respect. Shinji glanced at the placard on her desk and read KYOKO ZEPPELIN.

"I presume you accepted your parent's request?" The woman toned.

Shinji bobbed his head. When she turned her head he uttered, "Uh... yes."

"Good." The woman replied simply and looked back at the computer to enter in more information. Then she suddenly turned to open a cabinet drawer and produce a manilla envelope. She slapped it on the desk in front of her and pushed it towards him. "Please review the candidate acceptance form. When you are done, sign the terms and conditions at the end of the packet."

Shinji, wincing, slid the packet towards him and opened it to inspect the contents. Paragraphs upon paragraphs of legalese was printed on many sheets.

"Th-There's a lot..." Shinji said.

"Take your time." Was all Kyoko said.

She may have said it, Shinji said, but he figured she didn't have a lot of patience. He skimmed through the document, noting a lot of scary Terms and Conditions. Non-disclosure agreements, threats of legal action if he was to breach confidentiality, and so on. After page four he started to skim even worse, before getting to the end of the 40 page document. He took a moment to re-read parts in bold before he reached into his backpack for a pen.

"What are you doing?" Kyoko asked, startling Shinji.

"O-Oh... I can't find my pen-"

With a fluid motion Kyoko whisked one out of a chest pocket, clicked it on, and slapped it on the desk. Then she returned to her work.

Shinji nervously took the pen, then started to sign. He put the pen back on the desk.

"Signed?" She asked. Catching Shinji's nod she closed the folder with one hand and slid it closer to her. "You graduated from the boarding school you were previously attending?"

"N-No..." Shinji replied. It was in the middle of the school year... did she know that?

"Very well." Kyoko replied, "I am enrolling you in the Tokyo-3 junior high school. You'll be a late entry but there's no book or fee requirements necessary on your part. Your class will be 2-A. Other details will be given to you when you attend the first day of class."

"Okay..." Shinji answered.

Kyoko ignored the hesitance in Shinji's response and went on. "You will be assigned a room in housing block 14C. As you have no motorized vehicle, you will be given a free bus and transit pass courtesy of NERV. You will also be provided a paycheck and income for being a NERV employee, rescinded only upon termination of your activities here at NERV or due to a breach of contract. You will also be given an identity card you must keep on your person at all times, for entry into NERV facility and proof of your identity as a NERV employee. NERV employees enjoy a 10% discount at all stores and establishments in Tokyo-03, valid at any time and for any purchase."

Shinji blinked. He would be having a paycheck? Glancing at the manilla folder he had just signed, perhaps it was compensation for... whatever he would be doing. Kyoko returned to the drawer on her side of the desk to pull out another folder (blue this time) and slapped it on the desk in front of him. "This is yours. This contains basic information for your role here on the base."

Shinji only started to open it when Kyoko's printer started buzzing. She spun in her chair to face it, her back facing Shinji.

He looked down at the pamphlet. There was a little green instruction book of rules and regulations, a map of the city, a tour pamphlet, a-

A sheet landed in front of him with his information about the school he would be attending. Kyoko was speaking, "You will be on-call twenty-four seven for testing and combat activity should the need arise. Otherwise, you are expected to call the base everyday at five PM to confirm your schedule with central planning."

Shinji caught one word. "C-Combat?"

Kyoko's expression did not change. "Of course." She replied as she stared at the computer, "Evangelions are combat robots. We have already had several sorties in the city to repel attacks. You would know this if you paid attention to the news."

Shinji blinked. If there were giant robots running around major cities like this, he would have heard about them, surely. "Uh... well, where I lived we didn't hear much of the national news."

Kyoko made a snort. "Figures. In any case I'll let Captain Katsuragi, or Doctor Akagi, brief you on familiarization and training on Evangelion operations. For now, you will become acquainted with the city and your living situation."

Kyoko spun to another machine to start creating Shinji's identification card, but the boy was too lost in thought. It wasn't enough that he was going to... pilot... whatever it was that was in the _cage_. He was also going to do battle with it. Where he could die.

It occurred to Shinji then that nothing he had heard so far was describing _what_ he would be fighting.

Shinji followed Kyoko's terse instructions to finally get... somewhere. It was a lobby area of some kind, at the top of the longest flight of escalators Shinji had ever encountered. The room he was in was pretty wide, with a lone desk and plenty of red-cushioned chairs. Nobody was at the desk now, and Shinji was skeptical anyone really sat there.

Beyond the chairs was a security turn style and a set of doors, likely a security gate in order to get into the facility. Shinji absently flicked his new ID card, one that was projecting his school photo that he took last year.

Shinji looked around the room as he waited and then checked his watch. He had been here for a half hour, waiting for someone Kyoko said would be his guide to whatever new residence he would be living in. He sighed.

If he had his SDAT player things would be a lot simpler. Music just wasn't a barrier to the outside world- but also his tool for helping him work through things, or relax. Only when he was on the train to come here this morning did he realize that he forgot it at his aunt and uncle's place. He wondered if he would ever see it again.

Shinji fished through his backpack again. Not knowing what to expect he haddn't packed for an overnight stay, but he did bring a few things. However, he still couldn't find his pen. Even if he wanted to kill the time by writing his thoughts, or drying, or highlighting the intimidating NERV rulebook he had been given, he didn't have a writing implement to help make things stick. Where did his pen go?

Suddenly the door to the base opened and Shinji jumped. Two employees were leaving and sharing a joke between them. They didn't stop to look around and were probably just leaving for the day on some other business. Only when they got to the gate and used their badges did Shinji realize... they weren't speaking Japanese. His fragmentary English didn't pick up on their language either. Foreigners worked here too?

The room fell into silence again, forcing him to wait a little longer.

He didn't want to catch a nap in case his guide arrived, so with nothing better to do he started scanning the tour pamphlet of Tokyo-3. It was, pretty simply, a guide to the place. Tokyo-3 was constructed as the pinnacle of modern human science (at least, possible by Japan). The modern wonder of the city had an advanced rail system, city-wide internet connection and cell-phone reception, robots, and even holograms (which he would have to see, later). Thinking about where he lived now it was at least helping him forget the intimidating things of the past hour.

Of course, realizing that made him think of his parents.

Before he could dwell on that the door opened once more. A woman was leaving, but she cast a look around ad managed to see Shinji. coming to a halt she looked down the hallway towards the city exit, then approached Shinji. "Um, are you waiting for someone?"

"Uh, yes!" Shinji said, starting to rise and tensing to bow forward, "I-I'm Shinji..."

"Oh! Hello!" The woman replied and hastily bowed back to respond to him. "I'm Maya." She paused, then asked, "Are you... an intern or something?"

"Uh? No... I'm..." Shinji said once straightened, putting his hand on the back of his hand in the typical modest gesture, "I'm a... a pilot?"

"We have a new pilot?" Maya replied, "I wasn't... wait!" She pointed at him with realization on her face, "You're Ikari's son! There were rumors going around about that... wow, you're actually here!"

"Y-Yeah..." Shinji replied. This was odd. A complete stranger was more enthusiastic about his being here than his own parents.

Maya thumbed to the door, "Do you need to get in?"

"N-No," Shinji replied as he waved a hand, "I-I was waiting for someone to take me to where I was going to live..."

"I see." Maya replied, "Well, I'm only an operations technician, not a tour guide. But! I work with the Evangelion guidance teams, so you'll be hearing more from me! Anyway, I just got off work and I'm headed home. You take care now, okay?"

"Oh-Okay..." Shinji replied.

"Welcome to Tokyo-3! Bye Shinji!" She said as she walked off, waving to Shinji, and then continued to the turnpike where she flashed her ID. Shinji eased himself back into his seat, perplexed at the encounter. She was the most upbeat employee Shinji had met here. What was her name, Maya? He'd have to remember that. The first friendly face in this place to actually say hello to him.

But she wasn't his guide.

Shinji settled back into the seat and turned to the thick green booklet he had been handed. This was much more official than the pamphlet on Tokyo-3. The rules on protecting classified information were repeated here (mercifully since Shinji didn't take a copy of his agreement with him), as well as other rules for pilot behavior. He noted ones on living situation controls, expected salary, and even benefits! Shinji waved his tongue over his teeth- it had been a while since he had seen the dentist. He needed to see an optometrist too.

He was at the section on domestic living rules when the door opened a third time. A girl came out, one that immediately caught his attention from her red hair and foreign looks. She was about his age and about his height, dressed in long red pants, a black shirt, and a puffy olive-colored jacket with forign patches on it. She spotted him instantly. "Are you Shinji?"

"Y-Yes." Shinji said, standing and performing a polite bow. Raising he asked, "Are you supposed to take me to where I'm going to live?"

"Yes." She replied, watching him. Then she said, "I'm Asuka. Welcome to NERV."

"T-Thank you." Shinji replied out of reflex for the courtesy.

"This way," Asuka said as she started for the door, "It's a bit of a walk."

Shinji made sure he gathered everything before following her out the door and into Tokyo-3.

They walked three blocks in silence before Shinji finally had the nerve to break the ice. "Uh, how far is it?"

"Pretty far." Asuka replied, "But it's on this street. We just keep walking until we reach it."

Shinji turned his head to follow a bus. "Couldn't we take the bus?"

"It's cheaper." Asuka replied, "Besides, no bus line goes directly to where we're going anymore."

This didn't make sense to Shinji until they reached a particular crosswalk with a massive gash in the ground. Shinji had to stop and stare at the construction work. While they waited for the light to go their way he asked, "Wh-What happened?"

"An Angel." Asuka replied. She turned to look at him. "You didn't know?"

Shinji just shook his head.

Asuka sighed. "I don't know how much I'm supposed to tell you. It just... happens. There's fighting in the city."

Shinji wanted to push, but he also didn't want to irritate his guide. The light changed green and they continued across the street. Shinji couldn't help but keep throwing glances at the crater though, wondering what could have been large enough and had that much power to plow through city concrete.

As they were passing through the outskirts of the city bustle Shinji asked, "H-How did you get into NERV?"

"Both of my parents worked there." Asuka replied.

"M-Me too." Shinji said, secretly relieved to know he had something else in common with someone his age.

"I know." Asuka replied, "You're Shinji Ikari, son of the Base Commander and Scientific Director. You've been a rumor around the base for months, ever since the accident."

"A-Accident?" Shinji asked, "What happened?"

Asuka didn't say anything at first, before saying, "You'll find out soon enough."

Shinji fell silent again as he decided against prying. He looked around.

They had left behind the built up areas of the city. The buildings were looking a little older, more rundown. Evidently the shining technological marvel of the city only went so far. They were also moving closer towards the lake at the edge of the city. Shinji checked the pamphlet... it was lake ashi.

Finally they were approaching a row of high-rise apartment complexes. "We're here." Asuka said simply. Looking at the buildings, Shinji found them like most of the NERV employees he had met thus far; stale, imposing, uniform, and conformist. They were a series of identical apartment buildings that stretched a good ways down the street. No grass grew around the base, and a chain-link fence bordered the sidewalk and bare dirt. Somewhere, something was being hammered with rhythmic procession.

They walked down a simple stone pathway to the base of one of the apartment buildings. Asuka stopped and half-turned to Shinji to ask, "Do you have your apartment card?"

"Um..." Shinji replied and opened his backpack to pull out the blue folder Kyoko had handed him. Looking through the pocket folds, he found the white plastic card he presumed was what Asuka was asking for. Looking at it, it had a simple floor and room code printed on the white face. The reverse just had the magnetic strip, a serial number and a QR code.

As Shinji was putting his backpack away, Asuka was saying, "The landlord never comes- payment is dictated by NERV but your landline phone has maintenance and security programmed in."

As Shinji fitted the backpack over his shoulders again Asuka had paused, then said, "I'll see you to your apartment. Where is it?"

Shinji looked at the plastic card then showed it to Asuka when he couldn't decipher it. She examined the card and then turned to the stairs, saying, "Same as my floor, three flights up. Let's go."

* * *

The apartment was as bare bones and uninviting as the outside of the building.

The walls were bare insulation material, with a simple tile floor. One massive bay window was on the opposite side of the room, though it was hidden behind thick drapes. A kitchen was built into the right of the entryway. The bathroom was on his left as he walked in.

There were furnishings, at least. The kitchen had a stove and refrigerator. A bed with simple sheets was up against the window.

Just... the bare... essentials.

"Mail comes in every day at 4." Asuka said, standing in the doorway behind Shinji, "When it comes to shipping they bring the packages up by the elevator and put them just outside the door."

"I see…" Shinji replied, still a little stunned. This was the place his parents have decided he should live? Shinji turned around. "I... I don't know what to say. I... I thought..."

Asuka blinked, looking at Shinji's distress. She looked away in thought for a moment before she blinked and looked at him again to say, "Do you have any questions?"

"I…" Shinji began as he tried to verbalize his thoughts. Then, "No… thank you."

"Okay." She said and walked backwards out of the door. "Well... I'm... several doors over in 116. Knock, or whatever, if you need something."

Shinji, facing her, nodded. He looked away then, making Asuka dip her head also as she turned to go.

"A-Asuka!"

The redhead paused in the doorway and looked at him.

"Wh-When," he swallowed, "When my stuff comes in, could you help me decorate... or something?"

She blinked. Shinji couldn't make out her entire expression against the glow of the light outside, but he did hear her say, "We'll see."

She pushed out of the room and the door closed behind her with a heavy metallic CLUNK.

Shinji hesitated, there alone in the room, before he turned inward and walked to the center of the room. He clutched his head as he sighed with embarrassment. "Stupid, stupid..." What business did he have making an invitation to a total stranger like that? He had no reason to think she wanted anything more to do with him. The conversations they had on the way to this place weren't the ones that suggested she was open to more than just a friendship. He probably torched that bridge by being too forward. A creep.

Shinji sighed heavily.

He threw his backpack on the bed, then sat on the edge, before flattening himself on the thin mattress and sighing. What a day. This was the first moment he's had to just decompress in a place, without any appointments or anyone expecting him.

Where in the world has he ended up?  
"An unfamiliar ceiling." Shinji muttered. His stomach grumbled.

He glanced at his watch, where he realized he hadn't packed anything to eat. Sighing he realized he'd need to find groceries. He emptied his backpack, inspected the refrigerator and kitchen, programmed a small list into his flip-phone, then paused by the door on his way out.

He could ask Asuka to come.

He double-checked that he had the card, closed the door, and walked to hers. He raised his fist to knock, but then dropped it just as suddenly. He sighed, turned, and walked away.

"Don't need to be a creep." he uttered and started down the stairs. As he did, he reached into his pocket and pulled out the map with Tokyo-3's bus lines.

* * *

Asuka pulled her ear away from the door and walked slowly into her own counterpart of Shinji's apartment. She hesitated there, asking herself what she had been hoping for when she had heard the apartment door open? She had been distant to him- she didn't know him. Why was she excited for the chance to get to know him better?

The idea of having a coworker her age... with more emotional discourse than Rei... had been alluring. But she didn't know him- he could be just as perverted as the kids she left behind in Germany. What reason did she have to open up?

Maybe, she thought, his nice guy attitude wasn't a facade after all. She sighed at the missed opportunity.

Work had been done to make her copy of Shinji's drab apartment a little more cheery- a long carpet runner spread from the door to the main room, where another fluffy round carpet tried to hide the bare tile floor. Her bed had been pushed into the corner where Shinji's refrigerator sat, and this is where Asuka landed when she reached it. She sighed, then turned on the bed to look at the spread of homework she had unpacked before hearing Shinji leave his apartment.

Glancing at the clock, she sighed as she realized she had an errand. Flipping open her phone she dialed a number and held the phone to her ear.

"Did the third make it to his apartment?"

"Yes mother."

"Good. I presume you're studying."

"Yes, mother."

"Splendid. I rescheduled your exams to make room for a Synchronization test at 8am. Your exams will be at 5."

Asuka blinked. "But... Mother, I-"

"Are you saying you're not prepared?"

Asuka's jaw worked but she said nothing. She knew where this conversation would go if she protested. "No," She finally said, "I have it under control."

"Good." Her mother replied, "I'm still not satisfied with your synch scores. After your exams I want you here ready for trials. Understood?"

"Yes mother."

"Good." Replied Kyoko and hung up.

Asuka closed her phone and looked down at her assignments with an expressionless face. Then she looked at the large doll seated in the lavish red chair in the opposite corner. Sighing, she dropped the phone on the bed and resumed her studies.


	2. Chapter 2: Roots

**II. ROOTS**

Shinji had long been using his cell-phone as a makeshift alarm clock, since the second-hand desk clock he used back... home... didn't have that function. He reached out from under the sheets to squeeze the any button his fingers could grasp to turn it off, and grunted.

The unfamiliar ceiling shown down on him.

He woke up with a headache, but he couldn't tell where it came from. Last night's venture succeeded in getting him food and basic appliances, but maybe he should have gotten bed sheets with that too, to replace the cheap ones on the bed. Grunting he decided to amend the list sitting on his kitchen counter of things to get. SHEET SET x2.

Scratching his head he started for the shower. He had two hours to get to class on his first day of new school. He wondered if anyone at his old school would miss him... what would they say about him?

Probably that nobody knew him.

In the remaining hour Shinji, grabbed breakfast, re-packed his backpack, memorized the route, and walked to the bus station. Ten minutes after that, he was on his way.

* * *

A big city bus line was different from the quiet back-country township lines he was used to. Taking a seat on the outskirts of town there was hardly any people, but it filled up quickly. The bustle, overcrowding, and pushing made Shinji withdraw more and more into his seat, trying to stay as small and unnoticed as possible.

He used his SDAT player for situations like this, and missed having it. Again, it could blockade the outside world from trying to get his attention, and immerse him in his own thoughts. Without it he felt vulnerable.

He witnessed plenty of rudeness from people. Exchanged profanities between two college men, someone with no inside voice as he "talked" to someone on the phone. An infant crying in the arms of an uncaring, overworked mother... there was plenty of this to go around as the bus crawled north towards the school.

Something grabbed his attention though, seeing a young man sprint off the bus to catch up with a woman who had forgotten her purse. Shinji watched the young man as they drove off, and wondered why such a stranger would do that for someone.

At the next stop, he heard some commotion at the front before a voice cut through it. "I'll pay for her ticket."

"Y-You sure?" The woman asked.

"Yeah." The lady behind her said, "It's all right, I have an extra I'm not using."

Shinji blinked. For the rest of the ride he noticed little things, like people vacating their seats for others. Two men asking another to stop hovering over a lady, and stared him down until the man got off the bus. He wasn't sure what had changed, but on that ride something made him suspend his cynicism. Perhaps the world wasn't so bad after all. Perhaps it was worth defending.

He still held this feeling as he stepped off the bus in front of the Tokyo-3 Junior High School, where he would be attending school.

* * *

Classroom 2-A wasn't hard to find but entering the classroom was harder than he would have expected. He swallowed nervously as he stared at the 2-A sign over the door. Once he passed under it he would be immersed in a pool of complete strangers, all of them ready to judge him based on his first appearance.

This feeling wasn't new, and not just from entering a new grade. For a year his aunt had pressed him to join various clubs and after-school extra-curricular activities. Shinji had thought at the time that it was more attempts to get him out of the house... away from them. Aside from music, none of the activities stuck, and even the fellow musicians felt aloof and impersonal. It didn't give him the camaraderie that he expected... and craved.

He would be entering another situation now, where he knew no-one. Swallowing again he closed his eyes, took a breath, and approached the door.

He had not even two seconds of being in the classroom before someone called his name. "Shinji Ikari?

"Gah!" He exclaimed, a little startled, and looked down.

A couple of girls at the back of the class tittered at him, but the girl who spoke to him was giving him a pleasant, expectant look. She was seated in the front row, and had light brown hair tied in pigtails. Light brown freckles were dashed against her face.

Remembering that she spoke to him, and recalling the statement, Shinji straightened out his posture. "Uh, yes, I'm Shinji."

"Welcome to class!" The girl piped as she stood from her seat bowed to him. "I'm class representative Hikari Horaki. We're excited to have you here and have been eagerly expecting you!"

"Uh, expecting?" Shinji asked. It wasn't something he heard often.

Hikari looked dismayed for a moment. "We've had a lot of people transfer out since the attack began..." She brightened as she looked at him again, "So it's wonderful to have new students join us!"

"Uh, yeah." Shinji replied sheepishly. He didn't know what to say. He nodded his head and looked around the classroom. "So uh, where do I sit?"

Hikari looked around the classroom. "Anywhere I guess, there's no seating chart."

"Okay." Shinji nodded once again. "Uh... thank you."

Hikari nodded. "If you have any questions feel free to ask me." With a smile she added, "I'm here to help you!"

Shinji nodded with a smile back and continued walking, looking for a seat. As his hands swung at his sides he realized... maybe... maybe this was different. Someone went out of their way to say hello- previous class reps only stayed with their cliques and dismissed him. That was fine, he wouldn't want anything to do with them either.

Though there wasn't a seating chart, it was likely other students had dibs on spaces. He took his chances and sat in a random seat near the back of the classroom by the window. Once settled he took out a pen and fresh pad of paper, and looked around.

Without his SDAT player once more he listened to the idle chatter of the classroom while he idly doodled in the margins. Girls were gossiping in the front of the room, some students were talking about some sports related thing to his right, and someone at the back of the room was making annoying buzzing noises. With a glance, Shinji saw the kid was flying around a plastic aircraft model.

Shinji had the vain hope of perhaps connecting with someone here, but as he surveyed the class, he wasn't sure if he wanted to come out of his comfort circle for anyone here. His eyes rested on the back of the class rep's head. Maybe her, though...

The door rolled open once more and Shinji felt the atmosphere in the room change. Everyone else was reacting to the girl who just entered.

"Ah, Rei," Hikari was saying as she stood up to face the newcomer, "You've been absent for almost three weeks! Is everything all right?"

Shinji leaned his head around to look at the newcomer from a better angle. Immediately he blinked, startled at seeing the girl's blue hair. It wasn't just because it was blue- plenty of people even on his morning commute had artificial hair color. No, it was because the faded blue hair not only looked like a bad dye job, but her irises were red. She turned her head to look in Shinji's direction and the boy had to drop his gaze quickly to avoid looking awkward.

"Everything is fine, class representative." Rei replied, then started walking around Hikari. The class rep gave Rei a bewildered look before sighing and returning to her seat.

Shinji glanced up for a moment to see her turning down his row of seats. He focused harder on his notepad before he heard her feet shuffle to a stop next to his desk. He, for some reason prepared to receive some kind of rebuke from this girl for staring.

"You are in my seat." She said simply.

"Huh? Oh! Sorry, I was told we didn't have..." Shinji replied, standing suddenly and hastily gathering his things.

He heard some chuckles from the class as he gathered his things and quickly vacated the chair. Rei proceeded to sit in it, then put her head on her arm and stare out the window.

Shinji looked around at the other classmates in surprise, but they had all gone back to whatever it was they were doing. A few chuckles made Shinji guess the subject of their discussion was his part in it.

"Hey," The kid at the back with the plane said, pointing, "That seat's open."

"T-Thanks." Shinji replied, taking the seat to Rei's right. Once settled he glanced at Rei again to see she hadn't changed. He also wondered then why she didn't have any note paper prepared... or even a backpack.

"All Rise!" The Class Rep announced suddenly, to salute the instructor.

* * *

Fifteen minutes into Class and Shinji's expectation of learning anything new had been utterly dashed.

It started off well, though. The class rep asked him to come to the head of the class and introduce himself, which he did. He started his name and where he was from. He finished off with the standard line, saying, "I look forward to a fantastic year with all of you."

But the class rep threw him for a surprise by asking, "What are some of your hobbies Shinji? Tell us a little more about yourself."

Blinking, he looked out over the class. Heads had perked up, the audience seemed more attentive than he would have expected. "W-Well," He began, "I-I play the cello." He tried to think of anything else. "U-Uhm... I cook okay, up until recently I lived with my aunt and uncle and... uh... had to learn on my own."

That got some chuckles from the class, but he guessed this wasn't what they were expecting. He didn't have anything exciting to offer, and as Hikari thanked him he returned to his seat. Nobody welcomed him here as he made his way back to his chair.

Instruction began after that with the instructor talking about life before the second impact. It quickly transitioned into the instructor's personal life, of which Shinji was certain he would not be quizzed about. He stopped taking notes when the man began speaking about a wonderful girl he met on sabbatical in Hawaii.

As he doodled idly his ears picked up on more low-level conversations buzzing about the classroom.

"I coulda sworn she was one of the ones who got killed in those attacks…"

"What are you, paranoid? Maybe she was just sick or something."

"It's too coincidental. She disappears the day after that big monster showed up. Then, she doesn't reappear for two weeks, just as the city gets rebuilt."

"You think NERV has something to do with it? Like… they resurrect dead people?"

Shinji lifted his head a degree.

"Well if they do that, I wish I could make 'em resurrect my mom. Hey Kensuke, doesn't your dad work in the labs or something?"

"H-He's just an accountant! Dad never tells me what goes on there…"

Shinji glanced at Rei. Either she was uninterested in the obvious gossip, mortified beyond all words, or she was hard of hearing. Whatever the case, she was continually staring out the window.

Shinji glanced at the instructor as this room-level conversation was going on, and saw the old man facing away from them and staring up at the ceiling while he was droning on about something. Shinji could hear him talk, but not make out what he was saying to himself. He also noticed Hikari look over her shoulder with a look of dismay... about the decorum of the class? She caught Shinji's look and smiled, before turning back to her assignments.

Shinji dropped his pen and looked up at the ceiling. What was he doing here? What were any of them doing here?

* * *

When class had ended he made a point to talk to the class rep. Rei was already gone by the time Shinji got up to speak to Hikari.

When he explained what he overheard, Hikari's shoulders dropped. "Don't tell me you're taking all those things seriously, are you?"

"B-But what do they mean?" Shinji asked.

Hikari sighed as she gathered her papers. "Rei disappeared after the first attack on the city. A lot of people dropped out after that too, but at least they turned in their paperwork or told us that they were leaving. Rei didn't." She sighed again as she zipped up her backpack. "You know how people are, next thing you know Rei must have died because she didn't come to class."

Shinji found himself nodding, though it did give him another thought. "D-Did anyone actually die?"

Hikari's motions slowed a little. Finally, she said without looking at him. "Yes. We lost a lot of people. I... I lost my little sister Nozomi."

"What? I-I'm sorry to hear..."

"It's not your fault." Hikari replied sadly. "Everyone's lost someone, one way or another. Suzuhara was absent today, but his sister was killed too. Eureka lost her boyfriend Akito, and Yoko lost Kamina. Actually," She choked, "I'm surprised anyone's left."

As she brought her hand up to her face Shinji had to suppress the urge to comfort her. They hardly knew each other, and that was a boundary he couldn't cross, much as he was moved to help someone in pain.

The class rep sniffed. "I-I'm sorry... I-I need to be better focusing on the positives." She looked at him again as she took a breath and went on, "... people did stay, and the school is still meeting. They say this is the most advanced city in the whole world, so where else would be safer when the monsters come?"

Monsters? Shinji started to put the pieces together. Asuka had called them _Angels_. Somehow the monsters were coming _here_. And whatever these Evangelions were, they were designed to fight them. The Angels.

"Why are the monsters coming here?" Shinji asked.

Hikari shook her head. "I... I don't know." Looking at him she said, "After the first attack they told us the monsters were starting to appear, and NERV was tasked to protect all of Japan against them. When the next attack came, there were rumors going around that NERV was doing something to attract them here. Nowhere else in the world is having the same problem we are, but I heard there are NERV branches all over the world."

"I see." Shinji said, lost in thought. He had some more questions to ask Ritsuko when he saw her next.

Hikari sucked in a breath and said, "Well, that's it! Class is dismissed."

Shinji nodded as he came back to the present. "Do you need help cleaning up anything?"

The class rep shook her head. "Not today, but thanks! If you're willing to help maybe I'll take you up on it someday when I need the hand."

"Sounds great!" Shinji replied with a smile.

Hikari smiled back. "If you do need help with assignments, just let me know. I'm also a part-time tutor and I'd be happy to help you."

Shinji nodded. "Great! I'll keep that in mind!"

He followed her out after she locked the classroom, and exchanged a bit of small talk before she left to go to the office and turn in some paperwork. Shinji waved goodbye to her, and as he lowered his hand he realized he may have made his first friend at school. Whether the class rep was being polite as part of her duties or not, he liked speaking to her. It wasn't often that he got to talk to girls, especially ones that weren't turned off by his introverted nature.

And his interaction with Hikari went a lot better than the on with Asuka.

He walked down to the bus stop with these good feelings. He was waiting for it to arrive when his cell-phone rang in his pocket. He didn't recognize the number, but had a guess it was someone from here trying to reach him. "Hello?"

"Shinji, this is Doctor Akagi." The voice replied.

Ritsuko. "H-Hello doctor!"

Doctor Akagi paused on the other end before saying, "It sounded like you had a good day at school."

"Y-Yes, actually!" Shinji replied. Laughing he said, "I-I think I just made a friend!"

"That's good to hear! I'm calling to ask if you were busy and could come to the base early for some procedures and paperwork. Now that you're formally registered in our system we can begin some other work with you."

"U-uhm..." Shinji said and looked at his watch. 3:30. "Uh, I need to go shopping later for things, but I can be free right now."

"We may need you for a couple of hours." Ritsuko said, "How about this: if you're good in your tests I can arrange for you to get a ride back to wherever you need to go in the city. Does that sound agreeable?"

"Y-Yes actually." Shinji replied.

"Wonderful. Now, I presume you're still at school?" Ritsuko said, giving Shinji directions to the nearest gate where he could descend into the base. "I can send someone to come and meet you there, to guide you to my office."

"O-Okay." Shinji said, "U-Um... could it be Asuka?"

Ritsuko paused on the other end before saying, "Asuka's unavailable at the moment. Do you know of someone else?"

"O-Oh... umm..." Shinji tried to remember the woman's name, "Maya! Could she come and get me?"

"You've met Maya?"

"Mhmm!"

"What a coincidence, she's my chief technical assistant. I'll have her meet you there."

"Thank you, doctor!"

"Not a problem. I'll see you in a few minutes." Ritsuko said and hung up.

Shinji started walking, snapping the phone closed as he did. As he made his way into the city the gravity of his job here started to weigh on him.

He was one step closer to... piloting. Piloting the Evangelion.

* * *

The lobby he had entered was remarkably similar to the one he had been forced to wait in for close to an hour yesterday. Mercifully Maya was already there. "Hi Shinji! Didn't think I'd see you again THIS soon!"

"Y-Yeah..." Shinji replied as he approached her while she turned towards him.

"I've already talked to Doctor Akagi. I'm taking you to the cages today."

An uneasy tingle sparked along Shinji's spine. _The cages_. For the machines that would fight against _Angels_. He swallowed and said, "I'm ready."

Maya's gaze lingered on Shinji as they started walking. After a moment she asked, "Are you all right? You paled just now."

Shinji let out a breath and decided to voice his thought. "W-Why do you call them cages?"

Maya laughed- nervously, Shinji noted- "Ah, it's just a phrase! Something left over from the testing days. When one of the Evas went Rampant."

"R-Rampant?!" Shinji asked.

Maya looked around, laughing nervously and said, "Don't worry, that happened a long time ago. We've worked out most of the bugs now."

"_Most of them_?!" Shinji blasted.

Maya sighed. "Shinji, I don't know. That's what I was told the hangars were called, and the name stuck. Doctor Akagi and the rest of the staffers here have been working around the clock to keep these machines intact and functioning, let alone keeping them together. So far there haven't been any problems since unit two arrived."

Shinji wasn't sure if he should take that as a comfort or not, but Maya didn't seem to think he was in danger. He took in a breath and tried to relax by exhaling slowly. He repeated the process a few times and, to his relief, it worked. He was about as ready as he would ever be to face whatever it was he was about to encounter. Which could be anything.

* * *

After traveling for a bit Shinji's sense of direction was utterly shot. "Uh, do you know where we're going?" He asked Maya.

The technician laughed. "I think so! I've gotten lost plenty of times, but it helps to know some signposts. I've been here for half a year and it's taken me this long to get a basic idea of where I'm going."

Shinji looked at some of the signage on a passing corridor. "It's almost like it's designed to get you lost..."

"It is!" Maya replied, "Part of the intruder countermeasures, I'm told."

"Doctor Akagi seemed to know her way around pretty well."

"I'm not surprised. She's been working here over half her life." Maya replied.

Shinji blinked. Ritsuko wasn't that old looking. How could... He shook his head at the next thought. How much of that time was spent of her working with his parents? A dark wave lapped over his heart, tinging it with the depressing thought of his parents. They spent much of Shinji's entire life working with someone else but... hardly any time with their biological son.

Maya didn't notice, walking forward and saying, "Cheer up, you won't get lost as long as I'm around. I'll make sure to point you in the right direction when you need a guide! At least, as long as Doctor Akagi needs me..."

Shinji nodded absently. Thinking about all the things that could go wrong, he decided to ask Maya a question that was bothering him. "What happened in the... the battle? I s-saw some of the damage last night, and they talked about it in school this morning."

Maya's step slowed for a moment, but picked up as she said, "There have already been a couple of battles in the city Shinji. Unit 01, and then Unit 02 were sent into battle to defend the city."

"How many people died?" Shinji asked.

Maya's sunny disposition was gone. "Enough people died in the first battle, when we didn't know what to expect. But in the second battle we only had injuries- the city was evacuated in time. We hope by the next time nobody gets hurt or injured, except the thing that is coming here."

Shinji wasn't sure if he should feel terrified that NERV didn't have it's act together... or relieved that he wasn't the only novice here.

* * *

Eventually they reached the operations room for "the cages". The room he had entered was more of a long corridor with banks of computer terminals on either side of it. The long walls were large glass panels each looking into a larger enclosure beyond. Here Shinji got his first look at the Evangelions from the chest down. On his right was a purple one, on his left was a red one.

There was plenty of bustle and activity going on from the crews. At the center of it all were the two doctors, both wearing lab coats, both of them with blond hair. Kyoko Zeppelin was taking notes from a computer display. Ritsuko turned around when she heard Maya and Shinji advancing. "Shinji," Ritsuko said with a pleasant note, "Thank you for coming in early."

"N-No problem." Shinji replied as he grasped the shoulder strap of his backpack. He glanced at the red torso to his left, wondering who was the pilot of the other machine docked here.

Ritsuko said to Maya, "That'll be all Maya. Make sure the equipment is ready for unit 01."

"Yes Doctor." Maya replied. Maya smiled at Shinji before moving off to one of the computer terminals. When Shinji looked back at Ritsuko, the doctor was presenting him with a packet of some kind. "What's this?" Shinji asked as he took it.

"It's a contact plug suit." Ritsuko replied. "Think of it as your pilot suit. You'll need to change into it, we have lockers back down the corridor you came and to the left."

Shinji looked up at her. "You want me to change... now?"

"Yes Shinji." Ritusko replied.

Behind Ritsuko, Shinji saw the look of annoyance Kyoko snapped at them before she resumed her work at her clipboard.

Shinji looked back up at Risuko. "O-Ohkay..." He turned around and started back the way they came.

"And Shinji!" Ritsuko called.

"Yes?"

Ritsuko was smiling at him. "You need to change _completely_ out of what you're wearing before you put that on."

Shinji blinked. "Com-pletely?" He repeated.

"Yes. No underwear, jewelry, or anything."

Shinji swallowed and looked at the suit again. It didn't seem... very thick...

"You'll be fine Shinji." Ritsuko added.

He hoped so. Shinji turned to continue his trek to the changing rooms.

* * *

Compared to how high-tech the rest of the facility was, the locker rooms were quite ordinary. After the turn-in for privacy there was a row of lockers, a changing bench, and showers at the back. The door to a toilet was also back there, as well as an emergency exit.

He looked around. Nobody seemed to be here, or coming, so he set his backpack and the plugsuit down and started to try finding a locker. The first one already contained a white plugsuit. Blinking he moved on to the next one only to find it already contained a full set of women's clothes. His eyes fixed on the bra before he realized what he was looking at and quickly closed the locker.

The third locker was vacant. Guessing this was his, he put his backpack into it and started to change.

The "plugsuit" was a one-piece getup made of a material that felt like latex. The only way to get into it was through a release around the collar, where he had to climb into it feet first and pull it up and over him. Snapping the thing closed around the collar he spread his arms to look at himself and how... bulky the suit was. Surely he was doing something wrong.

He looked around the envelope that the plugsuit came in and sure enough, there was an instruction pamphlet. The final direction was to trigger something around the wrist. 'Secure control was how it was labeled, which maybe meant it was going to tighten? Standing back from the lockers and bench he felt around the control on the wrist.

"Wah!" Shinji cried as the suit collapsed around _all_ of him. Startled, he looked down at himself to see the suit had contracted along the contours of his body. The sleek suit fit well, and felt comfortable everywhere.

He looked down as he wondered how 'protected' he was. Well, at least it didn't show everything... and in spite of how thin the material felt... he didn't feel cold at all.

Swallowing he turned and started walking from the locker rooms.

* * *

Ten minutes later Shinji was walked up to the boarding area of the Evangelion. Ritsuko was with him, and on the way up she had been finally telling him what was about to happen.

"S-Synchronization?" Shinji asked.

"Correct." Ritsuko replied, "The Evangelion is a complex bio-mechanical machine. The system is particularly sensitive to the psychology of the pilot, so these synchronization tests are necessary to see how the system responds do you. Typically we use simulation bodies for this purpose, but since we have no starting data, you'll be connecting to your assigned unit instead."

Shinji nodded along. It seemed to make sense. "I-Is it dangerous?" He added under his breath, "Maya talked about an accident that happened a long time ago."

"Hnn." Ritsuko replied, "I'll have to talk to her about making you worried unnecessarily." Ritsuko paused to look back at him. "Shinji, Maya and I will be monitoring your progress to make sure nothing happens to you. You'll be fine. The process is completely harmless, and if there is any abnormalities we will work to keep things under control. Understood?"

Shinji swallowed, nodded, and then continued to follow her.

* * *

A few minutes later, Shinji figured out how to board his machine.

They were standing on scaffolding over the machine's shoulder, positioned behind the back of the head. The neck had been opened up at the back and a long, thin white cylinder was poised above a hole. A segment of the cylinder was opened to reveal a chair at the center of the pod.

As Shinji took a seat, Ritsuko leaned over a section of the chair to check some display panels. She was speaking to Shinji, "Remember, this is only a preliminary test. You won't be moving or doing anything in the cockpit. Just follow our instructions."

Shinji had been looking around his control seat. Apart from a couple of butterfly handles and a monitor display in front of him, there wasn't much in the way of actual controls. Even a car had more obvious instruments than this- what would he be doing?

He also noticed there weren't seat-belts.

"U-Um..." Shinji asked, "Are there seat belts?"

Ritsuko smirked. "You won't need to worry about that now. Your inertia will be checked by the LCL that will start to fill the tube."

"LC...L?"

"Link connection Liquid." Ritsuko said. She stood up from the display and walked to stand next to the cockpit, looking down on Shinji. "Don't worry, you can breathe it. It's saturated with oxygen and has the density of air.."

Shinji was already looking nervous. "I-I'm going to... b-breathe water?"

Ritsuko gave Shinji a smile. "How about this," She said, "I'll keep the lights off. You won't feel anything if you don't see it. Would that help you?"

Shinji blinked. If he wouldn't feel it, and if he didn't see it, how would he know? "Uh... Yeah... I think that will help."

Ritsuko smiled again, then signaled to the ground team. The hatch started closing.

Once Shinji was sealed in, all he could hear was his breathing echoing off the tube walls. Suddenly the plug lurched forward, throwing Shinji against the seat. His hands gripped the butterfly handles tighter, until the plug came to a stop. Breathing again.

Then he could hear the running of liquid, but he couldn't see anything. He closed his eyes again and started uttering a phrase of comfort to himself.

"I mustn't run away... I mustn't run away..."

Something changed slightly in his perception. On reflex he coughed and felt bubbles of air leaving. Had...had it happened?

"Shinji?" A voice said from the darkness. It was Doctor Akagi.

"Y-Yes?"

"You're doing fine. The LCL has filled the chamber and we are ready to begin the startup procedure. This is going to feel dramatic for your first time, so I want you to brace yourself."

Shinji swallowed. "O-Okay." He gripped the handles harder. "Ready."

The plug suddenly blazed with light.

* * *

Shinji's wailing scream that came through the pickup made half of the room chuckle in amusement.

Maya couldn't help herself from clapping as she laughed. Recovering, she turned to look up at Ritsuko to say, "I think that's a first. None of the other children reacted this way on their first time."

Kyoko, standing beside Maya's station, uttered, "The second child didn't even flinch during the tests."

Ritsuko walked to stand on Maya's other side, saying, "I'm sure your proud of her." Ritsuko reached forward to look at a readout on Maya's terminal.

Kyoko sighed under her breath, then asked impatiently, "Has the third stopped hyperventilating yet?"

Ritsuko straightened and said into her headset, "Shinji? The system is sorting itself out. Remain calm, this is going to take another few minutes."

"Oh-Okayyy!" The panicked voice of Shinji said, his fear amplified by the pickup. Another round of chuckles echoed in the room, especially at the look on his face. Ritsuko smiled; if Misato were here she would have given some quip about the boy by now.

"Status now?" Kyoko asked, once the light show in the camera pickup had died.

Maya was examining the charts displayed on her terminal. "The system is still configuring. This IS his first time in the plug, and it's been weeks since Eva-01 was brought to power."

On Maya's remark Ritsuko checked the structural integrity and musculature status readouts. All were fine. Evangelion 01 had not been powered since the first battle in Tokyo-3. It was in peak condition now.

Kyoko crossed her arms. "Leave it to Ikari to gum up affairs like this. We could have had Unit 01 on continuous standby if it weren't for this boy."

Ritsuko turned her head. "To which Ikari are you referring? There are three on the base now."

"Does it matter?" Kyoko quipped back.

* * *

Shinji's eyes stayed open during the whole light show. Finally a bright flash of light made him squeeze his eyes shut, but when he opened them again, the view of the cockpit was different.

Outside of his seat, black bands of an interface cut across his vision, displaying abstract bars and lines that probably meant something to the test crews. Beyond that were the walls of... the cage. He was looking through the eyes of that horrible mask!

Windows were opening and closing with status gibberish. Another window opened, this time showing feed from the testing office. Ritsuko, Maya, and Kyoko were all in the field of view of the camera."The system startup is complete Shinji," Ritsuko was saying, "The Evangelion is now operational. How does it feel?"

Shinji was looking around, trying to figure out how to respond until a series of characters flashed into existence before his face. Startled, he leaned back and tried to read them. He made out only that they were in english characters before the words disappeared. What...what was that?

"What was that?" Maya asked.

Ritsuko opened her mouth to speak when Kyoko answered for her. "An inconsequential anomaly from system startup. Probably someone trying to be cute."

"I-It was in English..." Shinji replied.

Ritsuko said, "It happens in unit 2 as well. There's no harm from it, just put it out of your mind for now, we're here to focus on the synchronization test. Shinji, how are you feeling?"

Shinji looked down at his left hand as he flexed it. "I... it feels like something's clamped around my forearms but... I don't see anything."

Ritsuko nodded. "Sympathetic tactile response. What you're feeling Shinji, is the pressure of the Evangelion's restraints. It's a byproduct of unit synchronization, and it also helps you empathize with the unit. In exchange, you have much greater control. We'll cover that when the time comes."

Shinji replaced his hand on the butterfly control as he tried to think over the ramifications of what Ritsuko just told him. What... what happens if he takes a hit in combat?

"Okay Shinji," Maya was saying, "I want you to start relaxing in the cockpit. For this static test you need to clear your mind and relax."

"O-Okay... I'll try" Shinji replied. He closed his eyes and started by taking a deep breath, then letting it out. He tried this a couple of times, but he was starting to get a little nervous knowing that three sets of eyes were watching him.

"Think of someplace that relaxes you." Maya offered, "Like home... or your friends."

"I-I don't have any." Shinji replied.

Maya put a hand to her mouth. "O-Oh..."

Ritsuko leaned forward to offer, "Then think of some comforting memories over the past few days, Shinji. I know you can."

Shinji nodded, closed his eyes, and leaned his head back.

_Maya, smiling at him as they stood in the entry lobby to the base._

_ Hikari looking up at him as he walked into the classroom, and getting up to greet him._

_ Asuka, stepping through the doorway to enter his apartment._

* * *

In the operations office all eyes were on the displays, watching the all-important synchronization numbers. Ritsuko was impressed already that Shinji had successfully connected, but her eyes were widening a little as the synch ratio continued to climb.

Ritsuko turned her head. She could see Kyoko's hand on the back of Maya's chair, her fingers tightening on the fabric and her knuckles turning white.

"S-Synchronization rate," Maya said, "45% and climbing."

Ritsuko nodded. "Impressive, for his first time."

Kyoko had a small frown on her face as her dead gaze was leveled on the main synchronization readout.

* * *

There was a background humm in the cockpit as Shinji rested there with his eyes closed. It felt conductive to his imagination.

_Hikari__ turning to him as class was to recess for lunch. "Do you want to have lunch together?"_

_ Asuka was holding his cello case, asking him if he wanted it set up on display._

_ Maya, standing in line with him and one other person. Both of them were offering to buy him lunch._

_ Ritsuko, driving him to his apartment and congratulating him on a well-done job._

_ His mother..._

Shinji's eyes opened.

* * *

The beeping of a negative rate was enough. A third of the technicians suddenly stood up, startled, over their monitors.

"S-Synch rate is-" Maya stammered.

"Calm down." Ritsuko said sternly, watching the synch rate decline. She reached up to her headset and pressed the earmuff. "Shinji?"

* * *

_The pair of them were standing above him. Silent, monolithic figures glaring down at him, lit from below._

"WHY?" Shinji cried to both figures, "WHY DID YOU LEAVE ME?"

_Nothing_.

Anger welled up in Shinji in this dream-state. Balling his fists, he screamed to them, "Why am I here if you DON'T WANT ME!?"

_Shinji..._

"Shinji?"  
Shinji?!

"SHINJI!"

Shinji blinked, suddenly back in the control cockpit. The humm of the cockpit eased him back into his surroundings, where he reached forward again to grab the butterfly handles and catch his breath. That was either the most vivid dream he's ever had... or there was something strange about being in the Evangelion that put him there.

Blinking, he recalled again that he was in test. He was being watched. He turned to look at the screen, seeing Maya's face... and Ritsuko's impassive look.

"I think we have all that we needed, Shinji."

* * *

The process for removing him was more subdued. The screen simply turned off, and he was aware of the LCL's exit when he coughed up the rest of it for a few moments. Finally he felt the plug extracted, and the cockpit opened. Ritsuko was there to see him.

"I-I'm sorry..." Shinji said.

"It's all right." Ritsuko replied, a little tersely to Shinji's ears. "Come on, you need to get out of that. Prolonged LCL contact isn't good for your skin when it's exposed to the air."

Shinji nodded and did as he was told, stepping out of the cockpit and following Ritsuko down the long stairway to the main corridor. About halfway down he decided to ask a question he dreaded hearing the answer to. "D-Did I do something wrong?"

They were alone on the stairway. Ritsuko sighed and came to a halt, turning to face him. "No Shinji, you performed wonderfully." Her tone was a-matter-of-factly, with a hint of concern.

This wasn't what he expected. "I-I did?"

Ritsuko nodded. "Your synchronization scores were better than we expected, especially for your first time. You broke the current record, actually."

Shinji nodded, but that didn't satisfy his curiosity. "So... then... what..."

"Shinji," Ritsuko said, stepping forward to him to get him to look at her. "The Evangelions are highly sensitive to emotions and feelings. Over time, you will have a better rapport with the machine, and the controls might not be as sensitive to you. But you need to take care not to lose yourself, and keep your feelings in check, especially now when you're getting started. Do you understand?"

Shinji gulped and looked down. It seemed... a lot to ask. How could he control what he was feeling when he himself was not sure _how_ he was feeling? He balled his fists as he looked down. "I... I don't know!"

Ritsuko watched him for a moment longer before she closed her eyes and half-turned away. "You're a fourteen year old boy." She opened her eyes to look down at Shinji, "I needed that reminder. You did well today, Shinji. If you keep practicing you'll only get better with time. Nobody is perfect on their first try here."

Shinji nodded but his fists were still balled. He tried internalizing Ritsuko's praise, since he had no reason to think it wasn't empty platitudes. But... why couldn't he? What was keeping him back from completely accepting her praise face-value?

Ritsuko noted the boy's conflict, but turned back to the next step of the stairs. "Come on, you need to rinse that stuff off."

Shinji nodded. He could worry about this next time. For now, he needed to put one foot in front of the next. He did just that. Being cold and wet brought him back to the reality that he could really use a shower.

* * *

Shinji was so focused on getting out of the plug suit that he didn't realize someone else was in the showers until the shower door itself opened, in the middle of changing out of his plugsuit. Out of reflex he looked, and was rewarded by his first look at a naked woman in the flesh. "GAH!" He panicked, slipping the Plugsuit back up his body as he hurriedly tried to exit the bathroom, "I-I'm sorry!" he cried, hitting the seal mechanism that closed rapidly around him. Fortunate for him, most of it fit correctly.

Ritsuko had been waiting outside and looked at him with a perplexed look when he ran out in his plugsuit. "Shinji?" She asked.

"Th-There's someone... in there!" Shinji replied, "I-I didn't... didn't mean..."

Ritsuko took a moment to think and then sighed. "Of course," She said, "It slipped my mind that the fitting rooms are coed. I'm sorry Shinji. If it helps any, I don't think Rei would be offended."

Shinji blinked at the familiar name, and his mind returned to this morning. Rei. The late classmate. The one with the blue hair and red eyes. The one everyone thought was dead.

She works here after all!

Shinji heard the patting of feet and turned around to see Rei emerge from the changing rooms. She was in a white plugsuit of her own, form-fitting, and with nearly identical electrodes hanging in her hair. She stopped to look at him for a moment, then looked at Ritsuko. "May I help you, Doctor Akagi?"

"No." Ritsuko replied, "Shinji was just preparing to get changed himself since he is done with his test today. You may continue."

"Yes Doctor." Rei replied and continued on her way. Shinji couldn't help staring, especially at the well-defined curvature of her butt. Seeing her naked for just that glance made his mind race...

"Shinji?"

"Uh?"

"Go change."

"Uh...er... yes ma'am!" Shinji replied and ducked into the changing rooms.

Ritsuko sighed and put a hand to her forehead. "We're going to have to do something about this before it becomes a problem."

* * *

It was said around the base that Commander Ikari had the best office in the entire complex. In part, this was true; it was certainly spacious. At the moment only one desk and a few chairs were positioned on top of the massive carpet decorated with the Kabbalah. Enormous windows looking out across the greenery surrounding the base provided blinding light to the room from the walls.

It served well to keep Gendo Ikari, commander of the base, in silhouette. The subjects of his interviews, on the other hand, had little shadow to be obscured. Right now the light was illuminating Kyoko Zepplin.

A print-out rested on Gendo's desk, before him. He had finished examining it. "You have reason for concern, Doctor?"

Kyoko's exposition was deadpan. "The last time we approached a negative synchronization rate was when Evangelion 00 went berserk. The third child's sharp decline would have resulted in an inversion had Doctor Akagi not interfered."

Yui Ikari spoke from beside Gendo's desk. "Evangelion 01 remained stable through the test, however."

Kyoko turned to her. "We should be grateful that we're not down another unit. Fortunate that 02 has been fully repaired and is ready for service."

Vice commander Fuyutuski spoke from standing beside Gendo by his chair. "We have managed in the past with only one unit. And the Commander has every confidence in Captain Katsuragi's tactical abilities."

Kyoko toned in response, "You cannot command an Eva after it has thrown it's saddle. Unless of course," She looked at Yui, "There's some way to recover an Evangelion after rampancy."

Yui blinked as she stared at Kyoko. "We hope to find out."

Kyoko blinked in response, turning to face Yui fully. "You're not serious, you mean... you _intend_ to continue with Scenario 7A? Do you have any idea what could happen if we _don't _catch it in time to prevent synchro-inversion?" She stepped forward, "You're not afraid of another impac-"

Gendo held up a hand. "Enough." When he had everyone's attention he folded it back under his chin. "I think that's enough alarmist speculation, doctor. If the Chief Science Officer has decided to proceed, then we will continue with Scenario 7A. As for the matter of Unit 01 and its pilot, Doctor Akagi has assumed the responsibility of ensuring both unit and pilot are operational by the end of the week. Your responsibilities are to monitor the health and performance of the other pilots, until such a time as the Third Children is certified for combat operations. Until then, you will not concern yourself with Unit 1, or the third children."

Kyoko squared her stance to Gendo once again. "Understood." She replied, then bent forward to say, "But if we experience another near-catastrophe when the Evangelion goes awry, I will consider filing protest against you and the Chief Science officer for ignoring my warnings."

"Duly noted. Dismissed, Doctor." Gendo said.

Kyoko spun and marched from the room, taking the long walk to the room's exit much quicker than most other visitors to this office. Once outside she paused, staring into space, to consider her next action. After a moment of thinking she started forward on a new directive.

* * *

Asuka presented herself ready for the second time that day.

"Good." Kyoko said as the two of them stood just outside the changing rooms, "We will begin synchronization trials in unit 02 to improve your synchronization scores."

Asuka blinked. "Mother, I was in the plug all da-"

It was remarkable that the slap was unheard in such a large space. Asuka, reeling, clutched her cheek and just stared ahead with a dead expression.

Kyoko continued, "Your synchronization performance is lacking, Second Children. And don't think I haven't been monitoring your grades either. Consider this punishment for failing this morning's exam."

Life returned to Asuka's eyes again, eyes wide. "But... I asked the instructor to grade it immediately after I took the test! I thought I-"

Another slap. This one made Asuka buck backwards. This time she dropped her hands to her sides as her eyes stared into space. She knew better than to protest.

"Now," Kyoko said, her expression unchanged through the conversation, "We will go to the cages, and you will synchronize with your Evangelion. The only way you are returning home tonight is if you can match _at least_ 40%. Do you understand?"

Asuka blinked. "Yes, mother."

Kyoko turned and started walking towards the cage operations office. When she didn't hear her daughter follow she raised her left hand and made a tugging gesture, as if she pulled at a chain.

Asuka Soryu Langley, Second Child and pilot of Evangelion 02, obediently followed.


	3. Chapter 3: Crushed

**III. CRUSHED**

Shinji woke again to the sound of his vibrating cell phone. Grunting he grabbed it, looked at it, then squeezed the buttons to shut of the alarm. The cell phone landed back on the bed as Shinji stared up at the grey ceiling of the undecorated apartment. He sighed.

At least his bed had sheets, the curtains were changed. The shopping trip Ritsuko had treated him to on the way home had paid off. His kitchen even had a few cooking implements and a couple of meals now, thanks to doctor Akagi. 'It's the least I could do for taking up part of your evening' she had said.

Still his room lacked... character. There were one or two things here and there, but it was still only the essentials. He desired carpets perhaps, so he wouldn't have to deal with the hard concrete. Maybe another set of curtains would be good too, perhaps a lamp. Everywhere he looked in the drab apartment, he saw spaces he could improve. Somehow he was looking forward to having company come and visit him in his space.

Pausing he imagined Hikari walking through the door. He shook his head and started about his day.

Now he had risen to day three in Tokyo-3.

As he went about his morning the image of Rei's naked body came unbidden to his thoughts. As he showered he paused at the thought, reflecting on the way it made him feel. He wouldn't deny it was... good... but also strange in the way that it had come about. He thought an intimate look like that would have been a lowering of barriers between himself and... well... a lover.

With Rei it felt like he had cheated a peek. It was unfair, and he felt disgusting.

Even if Rei haddn't said anything it still made him weird to contemplate. And he felt bad knowing that it was alluring to think about. He grunted.

So far the only way he could cope with things like this was to drive his focus on something else. Out of the shower he busied himself with preparing to go to school. White shirt, black pants, and his shoes filled out the standard look the school had recommended. So, he went in that. Today after school he would have to go shopping for more clothes, since this was the last change of clothing he had before he had to wash everything.

After posting the letter to his aunt and uncle with his new address, he was on his way.

* * *

Rei came back to his thoughts again on the bus. Had his SDAT player been here he would have doubtlessly been thinking about something else, but with nothing more to consider That Thought came back to his mind. How would he react when he saw Rei, assuming she came back to class?

It occurred to them how odd that exchange in the locker rooms was. Normally girls hit peeping toms, and Rei haddn't reacted. What did Ritsuko say, Rei wouldn't mind? She haddn't. What was that all about?

Could it be that Rei _wanted_ Shinji to get that look? But that didn't make sense... and if it was the case, it was a bizarre way to show it. She haddn't said anything to Shinji before except to get out of her chair. What was going on?  
Shinji got to class earlier than expected now that he knew the route. Entering class, Hikari spotted him immediately. "Hi Shinji!"

Seeing Hikari was a nice distraction from thinking of Rei. Indeed, Hikari standing to greet him gave him a feeling of deja'vu, and a warm feeling in his chest. "Uh, H-Hi!" He replied. He faced her and looked around, deciding to voice a question he had since last night, when he had an epiphany. "U-uhm," Shinji said, and lowered his voice, "Is there ever any homework?"

Hikari sighed. "No, not usually. We used to have assignments, but since the attacks started and we got a new instructor, there hasn't been anything." She made a shrug then and said at conversational volume, "But... keep your ears open! I don't know what he'll do."

"Okay..." Shinji replied, "Thanks!"

"Anytime." Hikari replied with a smile.

Shinji smiled back and started walking to a seat. He decided to avoid Rei entirely today, taking a seat near the back of the room instead. "U-uhm," Shinji asked, catching the attention of the model-flying Otaku at the back of the room, "I-Is this seat taken?"

The boy stopped admiring the tank model he brought in today. "That's Suzuhara's," The boy, Kensuke, said and pointed at another chair. "That one's free."

"T-Thanks." Shinji replied and took the seat Kensuke indicated. He had come prepared to face today's boredom with a cookbook of American recipes. It was something that caught his attention during the shopping spree last night, and on Ritsuko's recommendation he bought it. He decided to page through it.

He picked up on the attitude shifting in the class again as the conversation dipped. Looking up, a black-dressed boy walked in, wearing a black sports jacket over his black jogging pants, and wearing a black expression. Hands in pockets he walked right past Hikari and turned to find a seat. Shinji noted Hikari watching him as he entered, and caught her expression of regret when he saw her face in profile. Who was this guy?

The kid took a seat in the one Kensuke had warned him away from. Suzuhara, clearly. He propped his feet on the desk in front of him, put his hands on the back of his head, and leaned back. Shinji turned away before his gaze could be detected, and stared at the cookbook.

After a moment Shinji realized he haddn't seen Rei come in. Looking up at her chair he noticed she had come in without comment, and was once again staring out the window. Shinji's gaze lingered for a moment before he dropped it back down to the book. Taking a breath and easing it out, he thought over what this meant. Nothing good, at least. Either Rei didn't care... or...

"She hates me." He grunted.

He tried to focus on the squash casserole that was open before him in the book to take his mind off of dwelling on Rei. Instead, Shinji's ears picked up on the conversation happening behind him between Kensuke and Suzuhara.

"Hey," Kensuke asked, "Are you all right?"

"Fine." The other boy, Suzuhara, grunted.

"You were gone for a while. Is your sister okay?"

"No." Suzuhara replied.

"Oh..." Kensuke replied.

The vibe Shinji was getting from this Suzuhara wasn't comforting. Shinji had crossed paths with bullies before, and he had learned the best way to deal with them was to avoid them and not draw attention to himself- or their antics. This haddn't stopped him from being singled out now and again, but as someone told him after one encounter... Shinji wasn't interesting enough to antagonize for long. He hoped that was still the case.

But someone would have to discover that in order for this truth to be known to the school. Shinji silently grunted.

"Ayanami's back." Kensuke said behind Shinji.

"I thought she was dead or something." Suzuhara said.

"Nah, nah," Kensuke said, "In fact, she disappeared right after that big robot went into action. Hey! You don't think she's the pilot, do you?"

Suzuhara sighed. "That's some ridiculous bullshit. Who puts a kid in a robot pilot seat?"  
"Those things don't move on their own you know! My dad says they have kids piloting them! Kids like us! What if she's one of them?"

Shinji cast a glance in Rei's direction. If she heard, she was either mortified beyond words, deaf, or simply didn't care. Given her behavior in all of Shinji's encounters with her so far, he'd bet on her not caring. Who was this person?

"Ayanami's the pilot?" Suzuhara said.

"Well, it's just a guess." Kensuke said, "She disappears the day after that thing goes into action, and you know it wasn't a one-sided fight. We didn't see that robot either during the second sortie, so maybe she was injured."

Shinji could _feel_ the tension of Suzuhara's coiled anger. He was glad it wasn't focused on him... but... Shinji looked over at Rei again. Still no response.

"What about that transfer kid." Suzuhara said.

"Nah, it couldn't be him. He just got here." Kenuske said, "If Rei didn't come back, maybe. But since she's here I think it's just a coincidence."

Shinji hoped the goosebumps at the back of his neck weren't standing out too clearly to Suzuhara.

The silence behind him was unnerving. "Y'think he heard me?" Shinji heard Kensuke whisper.

Just then the door opened to reveal the instructor. "Stand!" Hikari called to the class.

* * *

Shinji doubted his education would include whimsical musings on Hawaii 1995, so Shinji felt like he missed nothing in this morning's instruction. Instead his notebook was filled with three ingredient lists for recipes he wanted to try. He had been so consumed with this that everything- Rei, Suzuhara, his Evangelion testing experience, had fallen away. This reflected that he was living alone, and was coming up with a plan. It felt good.

The call to recess interrupted his thinking suddenly and he decided to pack up, closing both books and starting to stand. He was startled as Suzuhara brushed past him with a grunt, headed for the door.

Shinji watched him go, then looked over at Rei's desk. She was already gone.

"Don't let him bother you," Kensuke said, grabbing Shinji's attention. The Otaku was already standing and speaking. "Touji's sister got hurt in one of the battles, so he's pissed off."

"I-I could tell..." Shinji replied and looked at the door where Suzuhara had disappeared. He was surprised, pleasantly, to see Hikari advancing down the rows of desks towards him. She smiled when she noticed his look, but turned her attention to Kensuke. "Mister Aida... is Touji all right?"

Kenuske shrugged. "How should I know? He doesn't open up to me about things like that."

"He talks to you more than anyone else in the class." Hikari replied.

"So?" Kensuke replied.

Hikari shook her head. "Kensuke, please find him and ask him if he's all right. I don't want him doing something rash when he's upset."

Kensuke sighed as he looked at Hikari's face. He gave a passing glance to Shinji before he left the room, headed for the door as he tucked his hands in his pockets.

Hikari, standing beside Shinji, sighed as she watched him go and then turned to Shinji. "Well... hello!"

"H-Hi." Shinji replied nervously. A thought came to hid mind and he decided to ask it, "A-Are you worried about him? S-Suzuhara?"

Hikari glanced at the door. "A little..." She looked back at Shinji, "You wouldn't have known. Suzuhara has... issues... and as class representative I need to make sure he's not acting out on them."

"Issues?" Shinji asked.

Hikari held up her hands and shook them, "He's not crazy if that's what you're thinking... but..." she lowered her hands, "He can be...direct... with his feelings."

"Oh..." Shinji replied. He wondered if he should tell Hikari what he overheard between Suzuhara and Kensuke, but she interrupted his thoughts.

"Well, it's lunchtime." Hikari said. Folding her hands behind her back she asked, "If you didn't have anyone to eat with, would you like to join me for lunch?"

Shinji blinked, surprised, and overcome with another feeling of Deja'vu. "Uh... sure!"

* * *

The campus was larger than Shinji would have expected. Walking with Hikari, her holding his lunch and he with his backpack, they passed through large vacant hallways and silent school buildings that were locked up.

Noticing his gaze on the closed buildings, Hikari said, "This school used to be bustling with people, but now it's mostly empty. We lost two thirds of the students here after the first attack."

"T-That's horrible!" Shinji replied.

Hikari shrugged. "It happens. I'm just glad we have people remaining. Most of us have parents in NERV though, so it's more like we have no place else to go..."

Shinji blinked and looked down at Hikari. "Y-You mean you have parents in NERV too?"

She turned to reply to him when both of them heard a shout from somewhere on campus. Hikari perked instantly, and the two of them stopped. When they heard it again, Hikari started on an urgent walk, then it became a run. Shinji hurried to catch up.

They rounded a corner and Hikari stopped. "Suzuhara!"

Touji turned around, hand over his fist. "Class rep..." He said.

They were in an abandoned courtyard. Touji was standing over Rei, the girl was dabbing blood away from her mouth.

Shinji started running for Rei on the ground, not concerned that Suzuhara was standing two steps away. Kneeling down to Rei he asked, "Are you all right?"

She looked up at him.

Shinji sucked in a breath as he saw her distinct, blood-red irises focused directly on him. Instead of the passive stare her expression bore a little shock. "I-I'm fine." She replied.

Shinji patted his pants pocket for a handkerchief. "Your lip is bleeding."

Suzuhara wasn't concerned with Shinji because Hikari had his full attention. "I should have known you would do something like this. Why Rei?"  
Suzuhara was looking at the ground, out of shame and defiance. "I couldn't feel better without doing something about it..."

Hikari took a step forward. "You didn't answer my question."

Her directness got Shinji and Rei's attention. Neither of them had seen the class rep this angry and directed.

Suzuhara looked up, but it was at the buildings. He was avoiding her gaze. "They said she was the pilot of that thing... the thing that stepped on my sister!" Suzuhara's fists had balled as he spoke, and he turned and took two steps away from the center of the confrontation with his back facing Hikari.

Hikari stared at Suzuhara with intense anger, but then closed her eyes and took a breath, then let it out. "I'm going to have to put you on report for this." She opened her eyes, a mix of anger and disappointment, "Striking other students... _repeatedly_... is an offense that will get you suspended, Suzuhara. You know this."

Suzuhara lowered his head in response. He knew.

Hikari continued, "I'm not going to say anything more about it now. Just go home, I'll talk to you tomorrow about what this means." Then she turned and walked towards Rei. Suzuhara turned to watch Hikari and Shinji help Rei up, before kicking his feet and starting to walk out of the courtyard.

Shinji turned his head to watch Suzuhara as he helped Rei to one of the nearby benches. Shinji saw Kensuke arrive, turning a corner into the courtyard and nearly running into Suzuhara. He seemed to say something to the boy, then look in Shinji's direction. He did a double-take before hurrying to catch up with Suzuhara.

Hikari sighed as she was pulling a napkin out of her lunch. "I KNEW something like this would happen." She was dabbing at Rei's lip, "The moment I saw him walk out like that I should have chased him myself. Oh," Hikari noted the bruising welt on Rei's cheek, "You're bruising. Do you need to see the nurse?"

"I am fine." Rei replied simply.

Hikari blinked. "Are you sure? What would your parents think? I don't want you getting in trouble at home because-"

"It won't be a problem." Rei interrupted, "There won't be any concern."

Shinji blinked. Why would this be the case? Surely... surely she had parents, didn't she? Shinji remembered seeing her at the base. She was another pilot. He winced... something was amiss here.

"All right." Hikari said, easing away but with concern still on her face. She glanced up at Shinji, catching his look, before she looked back down at Rei, "Please forgive Suzuhara... he has problems controlling his feelings. His sister was-"

"I'm aware of the situation." Rei said and stood up. "I will leave now." She said and simply started walking away. Hikari and Shinji also stood, watching her walk to pick up a parcel- likely her lunch- and leave the courtyard.

They both watched her go in silence and bewilderment.

Hikari sighed. "I'm going to have to go to the office to report this. As a witness, you'll have to come with me."

"O-Of course." Shinji replied without a second thought. As he walked with Hikari he remembered again the experience he had in the locker rooms just yesterday. Somehow that wasn't significant anymore.

Instead, his first impression of Rei was her eyes... specially the small degree of vulnerability he thought he saw, in them.

* * *

Suzuhara didn't return to class. Kensuke was muted for the rest of the day. When class ended Hikari approached him.

"He just walked off campus," Kensuke replied, "Didn't say much. I think he just walked home like you said."

Hikari nodded and thanked Kensuke before letting him go. Shinji remained, slowly packing his bags so he could catch Hikari after class. When the class was practically empty, he approached her. "H-Hey..."

"Hey." Hikari replied sadly as she finished packing the last of her things. She swung her backpack off the desk, sighed, and said, "I didn't want to do that, but I can't overlook it. I just..." She put a hand to her face to rub it, sighed again and said, "He's never been this upset before. I didn't think he had it in him to do something like that."

Shinji nodded, not sure what else to say.

Hikari forced herself to brighten. "Thank you for your help today. Believe it or not, not every day is this exciting!"

"Yeah!" Shinji replied, joining in her attempt to laugh it off, then saying, "No problem, I'm happy to help."

Smiling at him she replied, "I'm glad!" She looked around the class room. "Well, today was my day to clean up the room. Did you still want to help?"

"Sure!" Shinji replied.

For a half hour after class he worked with Hikari to arrange the desks and pick up trash. From there it turned into wiping some of the floor, as well. As they worked she and Shinji exchanged stories on where they were from, and how they got here. While Shinji didn't say how he came here and what he was doing at NERV, he did share about the situation with his parents.

"How sad," Hikari said, "Do you mean they haven't spoken to you since you came here?"

Shinji nodded as he mopped the floor. "I... I don't know why. I think maybe I'd just be in the way." He looked at her, "They're busy people. I just wish I knew why... why they wanted me back."

Hikari, mopping her side of the room, paused before resuming. "At least you have your mother and father. My mother's gone. A lot of us here have lost one parent or another, mostly our mothers."

"Uh?" Shinji replied, "All of... us?"

"Uh-huh," She answered, "All of us." She winced as she said, "Kenuske would say there's some kind of conspiracy. Maybe he's right, but why does it matter?"

Shinji didn't have anything to say to that at first, except, "I-I'm sorry."

Hikari pushed her mop. "It happened years ago Shinji. Losing my sister was a lot more... more recent." She stopped a moment to wipe her face before she continued, "In some ways I admire Suzuhara for being as direct about his feelings... at least he feels he can do something about them."

That struck a cord with Shinji, and he straightened up to look at Hikari. She was pretty, and he wanted to comfort her, then. But he also knew it wasn't his place to do so... but... "A-Are you okay?"

Hikari looked over at him with a small smile as she wiped the tears out of her face. "Y-Yes... I"m all right." Putting both hands on the mop handle she said, "Thank you, Shinji."

"I'm happy to help." Shinji replied with a smile and then turned back to mopping.

Looking at him, she leaned on the mop handle and asked, "Are you always this nice for everyone?"

Shinji slowed a little. He wasn't sure himself. "N-Not intentionally... I guess." He dunked the mop and continued at it, "M-My aunt and uncle didn't do things like cleaning up and keep the house so I just... started doing it. I guess I just took it for granted to be helpful but, I don't resent it. I'm happy if it makes other people happy."

Hikari, still smiling, said, "Nobody's ever offered to help me clean up the classroom. Thank you, Shinji."

Shinji caught the tone Hikari used and saw her smiling at him. It made him feel warm inside. "No problem, no problem at all!" Shinji replied.

* * *

They left the classroom an hour after class had ended. "I'll see you tomorrow."Hikari said pleasantly. Shinji waved goodbye to her again for the second day, before returning to the bus to head home.

His route would diverge a little bit. He needed to go clothes shopping, so his route changed a little. He disembarked several stops away from his apartment to go clothes shopping.

However, on his way inside he stopped as he saw a splash of red. Moving away from the door to the store he hurried down the street to round the corner where that color had disappeared. "Asuka!" Shinji shouted.

Asuka turned around. Even from here he could see the dark circles under her eyes and the dreary expression on her face. Her eyes widened a little when she recognized Shinji. "Shinji?"

Shinji Ikari blinked in surprise. "W-What happened?"

Asuka faced him. "I was pulling an all-nighter. I'm grabbing groceries now if you wanted to come with."

Shinji blinked, he had been here to go clothes shopping. Then he recalled the grocery list. "S-Sure!"

* * *

On their way back to the apartments, Asuka was sipping at the canned coffee she had bought.

Shinji checked his watch. He would have to call the base in a few minutes, when he got back in. His eyes rested on the plastic bag Asuka was using to carry her "groceries", which consisted of several boxes of instant ramen and coffee packs.

Shinji made a grimace. There had been frequent nights when his aunt and uncle, tired from the day, chose to partake in the instant meals instead of cooking dinner. Those days convinced Shinji to start learning how to cook- the noodles had been saturated with so much salt he practically gagged. He couldn't believe Asuka was forcing herself to eat that.

"uh... Asuka..."

She slowed and glanced back at him with her tired eyes.

"Do you... really want to eat that?" Shinji asked, "It's...gross..."

"It's cheap, I don't have time to cook." Asuka replied as she sipped at some more coffee.

Shinji looked at her with an expression of pity. What happened? She seemed reasonable and awake yesterday. "A-Are you okay?"

She stopped and looked at Shinji. He looked back, eyes focused on her face and expresison of tiredness. But there was... concern? Sadness?

"I'm fine." Asuka replied to him before turning and continuing on her walk.

Shinji watched her go, not sure about what he had just seen in her expression. She wasn't doing this willingly. Shinji raced to catch up and follow her.

They walked by the gouge in the road, now filled with concrete that was drying. Shinji remembered the conversation from yesterday in passing, and wondered if Asuka's behavior now was the result of something that started yesterday. Or was she always this grumpy?  
The expression he witnessed moments ago made him bet she wasn't. Something was wrong.

"A-Asuka..."

"What?" The redhead asked without turning this time.

Shinji clenched his fists as he braced against her tone. He wanted to ask her. "C-Could you come to my apartment?"

This time she stopped again and turned to Shinji with her tired expression. "What?" She asked, softer this time and with the uptake of confusion.

Shinji bowed his head to avert her dead gaze. "I-I just thought i-it would..." he swallowed, "Be better if I cooked for you tonight. I-I can't stand to see you eating that, e-especially seeing you this tired." Shinji looked up at her.

There was a softness to Asuka's expression even though her eyes were wide with shock. As he slowed to a stop she seemed to become aware of how she looked, blinked, and turned away. "I-I can't. I'm already behind and I need to keep studying." She replied as if stunned. She started walking again.

"Studying?" Shinji asked, and started walking to catch up to her, "You're in school too?"

"Online university." Asuka replied and sipped at her coffee, "Advanced courses online."

"U-University?" Shinji said and looked her over, "H-How old are you? You don't look older than I am and I'm in junior high!"

Asuka replied, "I graduated from Germany's University System with top marks. Child progeny. Now I'm here in Japan I have to graduated from the Japanese higher education system."

Shinji blinked, astounded. He couldn't believe this, or understand why. "Why?"

"Because I'm supposed to." Asuka sighed.

Shinji, still stunned, shook his head. He tried rationalizing why Asuka would have to subject herself to this.

-Unless her parents were making her-.

That realization hit like a Tetris block finding its niche, clearing understanding. he closed his mouth and looked at her. It may not be the reason, and Shinji acknowledge to himself that he may have just been guessing. But it was a good guess, and one that fit. It was also one he could identify with. "I see."

Asuka turned her head a little to face him. He couldn't see the expression on her face, and she turned it back to look forward again.

* * *

When they arrived at the apartment Shinji followed her up the steps to her door. As she pulled out the key card she took in a breath and puffed out, "Thank you for walking me here, Mister Ikari, but this is where we must part."

"B-But," Shinji started to say, reaching a hand up.

She was already in the door, looking at him. Her expression of weariness, regret.. and fear seared itself into his mind just as much as Rei's nudity had.

"No." She said, and the door closed. It gently clicked in the lock.

Shinji lowered his hand slowly and stepped closer to the door to stare at it. He looked up, then out at the bleak portion of the city as he tried to collect his thoughts. Then he remembered the parcel he was holding and decided to just go home, walking down the next few doors to his own apartment.

The hammering had stopped today at least. It was quiet at home when he clicked on the lights and entered the apartment. He put the ingredients away, then threw his backpack on the bed and followed it, collapsing backwards to lay across the short side of the bed and stare at the ceiling. Briefly he checked the time- ten minutes to five.

What a day.

Rei. He couldn't remember the details of her naked body so much now, not as much as her vivid stare. What was she? Why was she so odd? How could he find out, if he even wanted to? She was a pilot- that much he knew.

Suzuhara. A bully. Shinji would do well to stay clear of him as much as he could, though with any luck his action in school meant he would be expelled, and that would be the end of that. Somehow he doubted this. Suzuhara should be the last to know that Shinji was a pilot, else he'd suffer Rei's fate. Shinji sighed.

Hikari.

He had a warm feeling considering her, and the time they spent after class cleaning up. Thinking of helping her always make him felt warm, and he liked being close to her. Shinji wondered what she was feeling... could there be something? Perhaps. But he couldn't make assumptions, as easy as it would be to do so.

Asuka.

The dark circles under her eyes, the dead stare, and her groceries...

Shinji stood up. Even HE wouldn't resort to Raman if it came to it- that much salt and that much coffee could hardly constitute a meal. If she was studying, she would need real food. Shinji sat up, opened his backpack, and pulled out the cookbook.

* * *

Ritsuko Akagi's office was rather lonely, buried as it was in the depths of the complex, but she found it comforting. It was across the hall from Captain Katsuragi's office, darkened now, but at least in reach. With Misato still on a few days leave it had stayed dark for a while.

Thinking of it, Ritsuko stared out her office windows into the Captain's office. She wondered how Misato would react to Shinji...

She returned to her work. The repair status of Evangelion 02 was splayed across her desk, where she had been monitoring the repairs. The laser tentacle damage had been fixed, and the left hand had been successfully reattached with barely 2% errors reported in the nerve connections. The tissue abnormality had corrected itself; the "Eva Disease" scare was over. For that, Ritsuko sighed, though it only meant problems had been punted to the longterm.

Ritsuko briefly reviewed the synchronization test performance from unit 02 this morning before she closed the report- though not before noting it's duration and how long the previous test was last night. Odd, she'd have to check with Maya on operational times with the Eva. Even though Synch tests were low impact on the Evas, it still wasn't good to have them operational for long periods of time. This was something she'd have to look into.

She turned to the next task. Unit 00.

The Evangelion prototype had been constantly monitored since the disaster, and the readings had stabilized at least now. She had deemed the unit safe for excavation, which was in progress now, to prepare for the next phase of Scenario 7A.

Ritsuko remembered Kyoko's protesting. While she wasn't there for the confrontation with the Ikaris, she had heard enough through the grapevine. Privately she agreed with Kyoko- it was a risk to reactivate this unit. On the other hand, Kyoko's specialization wasn't in Evangelion handling or technology. To Ritsuko it was more likely Kyoko was using this incident to downplay the prototypes... and play up the reliance on "her" german-built Unit 02. Maybe, Ritsuko wondered, if it was becuase Kyoko herself had been in the unit.

There were interesting stories regarding-

The phone rang.

Ritsuko looked at the number. At first it seemed familiar, before the NERV automatic caller identification system projected IKARI, S into the LED display. She glanced at the clock- Shinji was five minutes early. She picked up. "Yes Shinji?"

There was a pause at the other end. Likely, Shinji was surprised he was identified so quickly. "U-Uhm, I wanted to call to see if I was needed tonight, like I'm supposed to?"

"One moment Shinji." Ritsuko replied. Turning to her computer she brought up the master scheduling chart. The performance teams were still evaluating Shinji's results from yesterday, and most of the cage staff was concentrated on freeing unit 00 and preparing for the reactivation test in the next few days.

She paused. The calendar also showed past events, and the long red bars denoting unit 02's activation tests were blaring out at her. She took a moment to examine them... it was more serious than she would have first realized. She definitely needed to look into what was going on- if for no other reason than performance limitations.

She returned to Shinji. "Shinji, we would like you in tonight for another synchronization test at six tonight. Does this sound good for you?"

"Could it be Seven?"

Ritsuko blinked. Normally such things couldn't be flexible... but with this being a routine check, she saw no reason to reschedule. She had allotted extra time for Shinji to prepare for the test, anyway. "Seven is fine. Do you have plans?"

"Something like that," Shinji replied, "Thanks doctor!"

"Thank you for calling Shinji, we will see you tonight." Ritusko said and hung up. She turned to face her computer again, to dig into the Unit 02 schedule, when her eyes caught sight of the pair of cats sitting on her desk... and the photograph behind them.

Ritsuko exchanged stares with the ghosts from the past.

Grimly she turned away from the picture and looked at the monitor. Since Shinji Ikari's arrival, Unit 02's operational time had grown significantly... all with static tests.

Ritsuko had a good guess why.

* * *

Asuka had been fighting the urge to nod off for a while. It seemed like forever. She was burning her intellect on this homework but understanding was still evading her. She nearly threw her pencil in frustration... she could have easily researched a german text online to compare with the Japanese one she was trying to cram... but... her mother had forbidden her access to the internet in this place. If she had asked, she already knew what her mother would say.

Asuka would do anything to prevent being sent back to the base.

The jarring knock on her door startled her brain. She had to blink to prevent being cross-eyed, and checked the time. There was roughly forty-five minutes until she had to be at the tests... and see her mother again. She had to cram as much as she could!

The door knocked again.

She rose, having a good guess on who it was. She was preparing to turn him away when she looked through the peep-hole and saw him holding a large pot in hand with oven mitts. He was staring at the door with a look of determination on his face.

It was... touching.

...What the hell.

She opened the door. Shinji's determined look melted into one of joy and a bit of relief. "H-Hi!"

Asuka looked down at the pot. "What is that?"

"Dinner!" Shinji replied, "Uh... may I come in?"

Asuka was secretly impressed with his boldness. She was also too tired to complain, even though she had every right to deny this boy. She was about to act on that when he added, "Y-You can say no. I-I won't be offended."

The smell of the casserole wafted to Asuka's nose, and she felt herself swoon. She haddn't had a real meal like that in days. Before she could realize what she was doing she had stepped backwards, giving him explicit permission to enter. Shinji nodded and did so, walking around her to her stove and setting down the large pot. Then he turned on the kitchen light, and with one of the oven mitts took off the cover. Steam wafted out of it.

Asuka, barefoot, stepped up next to the pot and peered into it. "What is this?"

"Chicken Spaghetti Casserole." Shinji replied as he looked around for bowls. Asuka, catching his need, pointed. Shinji opened the cupboard and pulled out a couple of bowls. He went on, "I was looking at quick meals in class today and wanted to try one."

Asuka passively handed Shinji a ladle and watched the boy eagerly dish food. At first she thought he was hungry and was getting it for himself... but she was startled as he handed her a bowl. "Careful," He said, "it's a little hot."

Asuka blinked, looking from the bowl to Shinji. He smiled at her. Gently she took it around the rims where it was cool. She nodded to a drawer. "Utensils are in there."

Without saying anything Shinji opened it, grabbed a couple of forks, and stuck one in her bowl. He started to fix himself some as Asuka trudged over to the bed, then sat down on it facing into the kitchen. Shinji, his own bowl made, walked into the center of the room. Looking around and finding no seat, he just sat down on his knees. As he handled the food he noticed the books.

"I told you I was studying." Asuka replied, half as a reprimand in protest against his coming here.

Shinji was holding his bowl with one of the oven mats he brought in. "Well... you need to eat better." He said, "If you keep eating that stuff it's not going to help you."

She looked down at the meal. She grabbed the fork, rolled the spaghetti on to it, then brought it to her mouth. She couldn't help murmuring in delight as she chewed on it, closing her eyes. She haddn't felt a taste this rich- this pleasant- in forever.

When she opened her eyes she saw Shinji was smiling at her. Then he started to have some of his own dinner. The two of them ate in silence for a moment, with Asuka eventually picking up her bowl and shoveling it into her mouth. When she had devoured her bowl, she realized she was still hungry.

"More?" Shinji asked.

She just presented the bowl to him. With another smile he picked it up and walked back to the kitchen. Asuka watched him through the process.

Her mother wouldn't like this.

Asuka swallowed, trying to still her nerves. Mother didn't need to know. That was part of the reason she moved out after all, was to get some distance and have some degree of privacy. She looked down at the plate Shinji was offering and accepted it. She watched him sit back down.

Then she turned her head to look at the homework still splayed out over the bed. She was supposed to be studying. The instructor had allowed Asuka to re-test once he learned who Asuka's mother was. Asuka was supposed to take the exam again tomorrow, and she needed to cram as much as possible. Since Asuka wasn't told which problems she got wrong, it meant going over everything again.

Her stomach cried out again though, and hunger tugged at her esophagus. Frowning, she picked the plate up, then started to eat.

Shinji watched in astonishment as she devoured the second bowl. When she set it down, clanking the fork against the bowl, he said, "I didn't think you'd devour it..."

Asuka blinked. "Is that all right?"

"It's fine," Shinji replied, "I made more than enough. I-I wasn't sure how much you would want, and it's gotta be better than the ramen."

Comparing an artificial meal to something home-cooked was no contest, even Asuska knew. But she couldn't argue with Shinji after just tasting a decent, home cooked meal.

Shinji looked down at his bowl. "I-I'm sorry... I just wanted you to have something better to eat while you studied, is all."

Asuka blinked. She opened her mouth to speak when suddenly her phone went off in that particular tone. Fear stabbed her heart.

"Wow, what is-" Shinji asked then stopped as he saw Asuka visibly paling. He started to stand. "H-Hey... Asuka?"

She reached across the bed to grab the black cell phone. Opening it, she answered in german. "Hallo, Mutter."

Shinji just looked up at Asuka, noting her expression as she was taking the call.. He could hear the voice on the other end somewhat, and winced. While he couldn't make out the exact words, the tone of voice sounded like-

Asuka spoke in German, the tone suggesting she was trying to argue a point. She was suddenly cut off by a reply that Shinji hear distinctly thorough the phone.

Kyoko?

"Ja, Mutter." Asuka answered in monotone after a silence. Another pause. "Ja, Mutter."

Shinji, horrified, watched Asuka's expression had gone blank and she was staring ahead. Combined with the tiredness heavy in her eyes, she looked like a zombie. "Ja, Mutter."

She simply lowered her hand and snapped the phone closed. She took a breath, and then said without raising her head, "I have to go to the base."

Shinji glanced at the clock. It was still another hour until he told Ritsuko he would have to be at the base... but... "Well, so much for dinner." He said as he started to rise.

"Yes." Asuka said quietly.

Shinji took his plate to the kitchen. "Let me take care of these and then I can join you."

Asuka blinked out of shock. She looked up at Shinji. "What?"

"Yeah." Shinji replied, "I was called to the base too. I told Doctor Akagi I would be a little later though, because I wanted to have dinner. I didn't know you were being called in though and I want to go to with you."

Asuka shook her head slowly, but only got as far as turning it left as her eyes stared at Shinji. She stared at him as he cleaned the last bit of dinner out of his bowl, snapping up more mouthfuls of his own before disposing of the rest. He looked at her, "Did you want any more of this before I pitched it?"

Asuka's eyes glanced to the pot. There was no way in hell she was turning down a home cooked meal. "Yes." She declared, standing and striding into the kitchen with her plate. She also downed the last of her meal before sticking her plate in the sink on top of Shinji's.

They both stared at the pot, which had leftovers still in it.

"You have some cling wrap?" Shinji asked.

"Yeah…" Asuka replied and yanked open one of the drawers.. Shinji uncovered the pot and looked at the contents. When she leaned up with the box of cling wrapping, she saw he was looking at the fridge. Putting two and two together she shook her head, "I couldn't…"

"You don't have the space?"

"No but-"

"I don't mind," He said, "I can do without it… I need to buy more kitchenware anyway. And It's better than the Ramen."

Asuka could not disagree. She slipped the wrapping over the pot, then hefted it as Shinji opened the refrigerator. Both looked inside to realize she wouldn't have room.

"Well," Shinji said, watching as Asuka set down the pot, grabbed the nearly empty gallon of milk and opened the cap. Shinji watched her down it all in one gulp, then wipe her mouth saying, "Does a body good." She capped the carton and tossed it across the kitchen into a recycling bin Shinji haddn't noticed until that very moment. He opened the refrigerator again, where he watched Asuka place the pot in the gap left. "It fits!" Shinji said triumphantly. Then he closed the door.

* * *

The walk to the base was quiet at first. Shinji almost asked three times if the person on the other end really was Doctor Zepplin, but he wasn't sure how much he should pry. He just kept walking until another question came to him. "D-Do you ever cook for yourself?"

He hoped he phrased his question right, he didn't want to seem accusatory. Asuka sucked in a breath and replied, "It's been a long time since I've tried. I'm usually too busy studying."

"Y-Yeah, I'll bet." Shinji said. Swallowing, he said, "I-I respect you for the amount of work you put in... I-I'm sorry I just barged in..."

Asuka pondered her response for a moment before she said, "It's ok. Thank you for bringing over dinner."

"I-I'm glad you liked it." Shinji breathed, pleased. Still, he thought to himself, it was presumptive of him to just barge in. At least she forgave him for it it this time. He raised his head to try changing the subject, "U-Um... what do you usually like to eat? I-If you could, I mean."

Asuka blinked. "I... uh, like meat." Asuka replied.

"Just meat?"

"Yes." Asuka replied. "I don't get to eat it as much as I did when I was in germany."

"W-Well..." Shinij hesitated, "There are some great recipes here. I know a few."

"Like what?" Asuka asked.

"Uh," Shinji said and started listing a few off. "Steak, Yakiniku," He listed off a few others. "My aunt liked meat too, sometimes she asked me to cook things for her."

Asuka nodded along as they continued walking. They were approaching the entrance to the base, now. "Have you cooked for a long time?"

Shinji thought about his answer before giving it. "Most of my life, actually. I started learning since my parents left me with my aunt and uncle."

Asuka hesitated a little and looked at Shinji. "They left you?"

"Yeah," Shinji replied as he grabbed his wallet while they approached the turnstile. He stopped as he looked at his card and uttered, "My parents abandoned me... until they needed me here."

Without saying anything else he pushed his way through the security machine. Asuka followed.

* * *

At least Shinji wasn't lost getting to the cages this time. Down to the fourth floor of the base, down a corridor and follow the red marks on the rest. Eventually they made it to the changing rooms, just outside the cages.

Shinji remembered the debacle from yesterday and slowed. "U-Uh-"

"Go ahead and get changed first." Asuka said.

Shinji looked at her. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah."

Shinji paused, then accepted meekly. "Okay..." He said and strode into the room.

Rei wasn't in there this time.

Shinji changed in silence, quickly undressing, then opening his locker. He sat on the bench and was pushing his feet into the plugsuit when he heard something from outside. "Asuka!"

He stopped to listen. No doubt about it, that was Doctor Zeppelin.

"Why aren't you changing?"

"Ikari is in there."

"Ikari? What is he doing on the base?"

"He said Doctor Akagi called him to the base too."

Shinji resumed dressing, pushing his foot all the way down to the cleat before standing up to pull the rest up past his waist.

"I see... and I suppose you happen to run into him on the way here?" Kyoko asked.

"Yes." Asuka said. It made Shinji pause... she had lied on his behalf.

There was also a pause from outside. "If you're lying to me-"

"I ran into him on the way here Mother! He insisted that he'd come with me and I let him change first! I didn't think it was a problem!"

Shinji paused for a second time to listen as the plugsuit was fitting over his torso.

"Ikari!" Kyoko's voice called inside.

"Y-Yes ma'am?"

"Hurry up in there!"  
"Y-Yes ma'am!" Shinji responded obediently and finished securing his plugsuit's neck clasps. Then smoothly he activated the seal on the suit, which collapsed around his body with a hiss. He staggered- he still wasn't used to the thing collapsing around his privates that quickly.

Working with urgency to save Asuka from Kyoko he closed his locker and strode out of the room. "Okay," He said.

Asuka whirled into the changing rooms behind him. Shinji turned his head only to catch a blur of her hair, before he looked up at Kyoko.

She was staring down at him. "Ikari," She said, "I know you were listening. Was my daughter telling the truth?"

Shinji blinked. He puffed up his chest, "Y-Yes! I-I ran into Asuka from shopping a-and I s-still don't know my way around. A-Asuka was nice enough to bring me here."

Kyoko continued staring at Shinji, making the young man start to sweat.

"Very well." Kyoko said. "Asuka is a very busy person, and doesn't have time for friendships. Stay away from her if you know what is best for you."

Shinji glanced back at the door to the lockers. He wanted to protest on Asuka's behalf, trying to find some accord with this person... but since Asuka had just lied on his behalf, he wasn't sure if anything he said could raise Kyoko's suspicions. "Er... Y-yes doctor."

"Good." Kyoko said and started walking towards the cages. "When Asuka is done, the two of you will report to your units for evaluation testing. I'll inform Doctor Akagi you have arrived."

"T-Thank... you." Shinji said under his breath as she walked away. Shinji sighed when she rounded the corner, then leaned on the wall next to the changing room's door. He rubbed his face.

He turned his head when he heard Asuka's patting feet coming out of the changing rooms. Her suit was a bright cherry red with orange highlights, a vibrant contrast to his white-black suit. Then he saw the expression on her face that gave Shinji pause. Her face was a mixture of concern and regret peeking out from over the tired circles under her eyes.

Asuka blinked, then stiffened from remembering her mother had just been here. "Come on," She said, "They're waiting for us."

"Asuka." Shinji said when Asuka passed. She paused and turned to him.

"I understand." He said, "What it's like. My... they are the same way."

Shinji could swear Asuka was starting to tear up, but she turned away before he could be sure. "Come on." She said.

* * *

Shinji parted from Asuka to ascend the staircase to go up to the cockpit platform for his Evangelion. His gaze lingered on Asuka until it was obstructed by the gantry. There was no sign of Maya, Ritsuko, or anyone else he knew among the ground crew. His cockpit was open for him already.

Sitting down in it, one of the orange suited technicians came over to check on the instrumentation in his chair. "All set?" The man asked Shinji.

Blinking, Shinji looked up at the man. He still didn't recognize him. Shinji looked over the cockpit... he wasn't sure if there was anything else to be 'set' about. "Y-Yes... thanks for asking."

The technician smiled and leaned up from the cockpit to wave the go-ahead. The cockpit started to close, and Shinji grasped the butterfly handles. A moment after the cockpit closed, lights came on to illuminate the inside of the plug. Shinji paused... this haddn't happened last time.

Recalling the procedure he remembered- as the plug rammed forward- that his cockpit would start to fill with water. Knowing this Shinji closed his eyes and took in a deep breath, then let it out, to relax and stay calm. Being immersed in the... LCL? was no different than the air. It was just-

He burped, and felt the air bubbles cascading over his nose.

"Shinji!" Maya was saying, "Doctor Akagi is busy looking into something else, so I'll be managing your startup until she gets here. Are you ready?"

Shinji still had his eyes closed. "I-I'm ready."

He could see the light show playing through his eyes, but at least he wasn't disoriented by it as it whipped by. There was something he wanted to see though.

When the final flash of light illuminated his eyes, he opened them. The cockpit's viewing bars were there, along with the flickering status panels. He was waiting for-

That. The English characters started playing before his face. The only thing he could make out about them was that they were different from last time, before they disappeared. He leaned forward as he grasped the handles, still wondering if he should be worried that this happened.

"Okay Shinji," Maya said, "Startup is completed. How do you feel?"

Shinji flexed his hands, feeling the gentle pressure of the restraints against them. "I'm okay." He said, remembering the thing Ritsuko said yesterday about Synthetic Tactile... whatever. His grip tightened on the handles. "I-I'm feeling that sympathetic...tactile...thing."

Maya replied from her window, "It's something to get used to. Asuka took a while to get used to it too, and we had to perform some adjustments. Let me know if it's a little too sensitive for you, but the more sensitive it is, the greater control you'll have."

"R-right." Shinji replied. A thought occurred to him. "M-Maya?"

"Yes Shinji?"

"I-If I feel the robot's pain th-then... could I die?"

Maya hesitated. "Well," She finally said, "I guess for you to die, your Evangelion would have to be dead too, Shinji."

Shinji didn't know what to make of that.

"All right," Maya said, "While we wait for Doctor Akagi , how about I walk you through Evangelion operations so you know what some of the controls you're looking at mean."

* * *

In the next cage over, Evangelion 02 was under identical restraints. The narrow, four-eyed head unit of the first production Evangelion stared straight ahead. In the plug, Asuka had completed her own startup sequence and was gripping her customized handles. When the start-up light show had completed she took in a breath and sighed, flexing her fingers across the handles.

"Asuka," Her mother said through the SOUND ONLY pickup to her left, "We're going to go through this again. Begin the process."

Asuka nodded and closed her eyes. It was as it always was- she had to relax. She released her hold on the handles and tried to clear her thoughts.

In the operations office looking at the Evangelion unit, Kyoko stared through the glass at the Eva unit and crossed her arms. She looked down at the synchronization monitor, then leaned forward to switch the display to another readout. "Otto, Notify me if she goes beneath 30%." She toned in german to one of the technicians.

"Yes Ma'am." The german NERV technician replied.

In the plug Asuka's feelings were swirling slowly in a whirlpool. She had been through this enough times to know how the system worked, what set it off, and how it behaved in general. For a vivid example she only needed to think back to her first battle against the fourth angel to remember...

There was a change in that whirlpool, a tinge of an angry color. Asuka worked to correct it- to evade the thought and change her line of thinking- but the tinge remained. She couldn't dismiss her performance in battle that easily, and so worked to keep that memory from consuming her. One trick she had to evading such things that would hurt her synch performance was to blot it out with a happier memory.

The pool of pleasant thoughts was thin, though. Even the day she discovered she would be a pilot- the proud time when she poured over the technical specifications of her machine, the _Evangelion_, was marred by the looming shadow of her mother's demands. Nowadays it felt more like a prison sentence she was unaware of, than something to be pleased with.

Even the one date she had been on in her life was a poor memory, when she discovered that he had been using her as arm candy in order to make himself look good. How often she realized she was being used-

"Asuka." Her mother toned.

Asuka re-gripped the handles, but her eyes were still closed. It was so easy to chase the rabbit down into depressing, negative thoughts. On the other hand the reminder from her mother was a good way to break the spell, bring her to the present, and focus. She tried again, re-gripping the handles for an additional time. She licked her lips, and sucked in another breath.

If she couldn't find something positive to hold on to, it would be another long night in the plug in search of that elusive 40%. Last night it had been her independence that kept her afloat... but with her mother's threats lately to take that away from her, even that was tinged with fear.

Dolly had been a source of comfort for a long, long time. Her only friend for years, Dolly was the one person who never judged her, or expected anything from her. She held on to the memory of her doll now, though the memory was metaphorically frayed and ragged.

"Good going Asuka." Kyoko said.

Her mind winced as she clutched the doll- and the butterfly handles- in the plug. Her chest collapsed a little as her mind imagined clutching the doll tightly to her chest.

But she needed something more. She needed some escape from this reality if she wanted to calm her mind down... and appease the spirit controlling the Evangelion.

There, in the distance. This evening.

A fresh wave of emotion lapped over the whirlpool when she returned to the moment when she opened the door to her apartment and saw Shinji standing there. He was holding the pot in the oven mitts, smiling stupidly at her. It was stupid, but she could tell it was genuine.

Her guard came up. Waxy plates of her defenses were moving up from her psyche to snip this thing out of her mind. She couldn't let this happen, and before she could acknowledge _why_, she was able to calm those sensibilities down and let herself enjoy that moment.

Then she was sitting on the bed, cross-legged with a bowl of dinner on her lap. Shinji was sitting on the floor, on her obnoxious pink carpet, looking up at her. Even just this moment of having someone friendly in her apartment was welcome. A guest! Someone who wasn't expecting something out of her.

Shinji looked down at his bowl. "I-I'm sorry... I just wanted you to have something better to eat while you studied, is all."

Why did he do this? What did he want from her?

Even if she didn't know the reason, his mere presence... the act of coming... was welcome. He cared, and asked for nothing in return. A warm glow in her chest was lit as she basked in the memory.

"Hey," Shinji said, suddenly the two of them were in the hall. Merely moments ago. "I understand."

The wave of comfort washed over her once again. The warmth in her chest throbbed. Surrounded by the comforting hum of the entry plug, isolated from the outside world, she could rest in that warmth. She sighed out a long breath.

"Good... good! Keep it up Asuka!" Her mother's voice proclaimed.

Mother.

The images flashed before her eyes once again. Shinji banging on the door. Shinji being in her apartment. Her mother's accusatory shadow standing over her.

"I see... and I suppose you happen to run into him on the way here? If you're lying to me, you will suffer the consequences Asuka, starting with you moving back in with me. I won't let you go, you'll suffocate under my thumb. I love you Asuka, you make me proud Asuka. You will perform for me, Asuka. You will do as I say."

She knew she was losing it. She tried to take a deep breath but she couldn't help the despair spiraling in her mind. She had lied to her mother, and that had severe consequences. She gagged, trying to return to Shinji, but even then it was tinged with the slime of fear. The closer she tried to get to Shinji, the more fearful she became.

He's a distraction. I want him to help me. Mother won't let him help me.

"Asuka!"

The girl couldn't hear her mother. She was too busy trying to keep down the bile that was coming up from her stomach.

She failed.

* * *

Maya suddenly cut-off mid syllable. "Uh... Maya?" Shinji asked.

Maya had been looking off-camera. "Wait a moment Shinji." Maya replied and the monitor went to SOUND ONLY.

Shinji blinked. He leaned back in the chair, puzzled and a little afraid. Was it something he did? No, it couldn't be. He had only done what Maya taught him to do, and what she had allowed him to do. He couldn't have done anything if she directed him- it was all safe.

Finally Maya's voice came back but the monitor was still SOUND ONLY. "S-Something's happening in Eva 02," Her voice sounded conspiratorial, "I don't think now is a good time to ask what."

"Is Asuka all right?" Shinji asked.

"I... I don't know Shinji. I can't see why she would be, her synch ratios are okay so she's stabilized. Just hang tight."

The monitor window closed, startling Shinji. He may have been in this machine only three times so far, but nobody had dropped him mid-sentence to run off like this. He sat in the cockpit, surrounded by the humm of the system, with nothing to do.

He was worried about Asuka. Knowing that something had happened to her...

He curled up in the chair as he thought back to what Maya had just told him. Why not use the comms? He knew how they worked now. Shinji tried to focus. He had learned that part of the system controlling the Evangelions was through thought control. If he just thought it, maybe he could-

A comm window opened to Evangelion 02. Shinji's head whirled to it to look. "A-Asuka!"

She was covering her mouth, and drifting in front of her was an orange mist with noodles. In horror he realized it was her dinner from only the past hour.

Her head had peeked up from over her knees, her blue bloodshot eyes looking up at him. She moved, swinging a hand at the monitor window and suddenly the communication ended.

Shinji blinked, now more in shock than ever. Something was wrong. He willed a communication window open to Maya, but the communication was denied. He gripped the handles. "M-Maya! Answer me!"

* * *

The test had to be aborted for Unit 02. The plug had to be evacuated.

The LCL being drained had to be discarded for contamination. They also had to decontaminate the plug now, per regulations, since stomach acid was a whole different degree of contaminant over loose skin and hair cells.

Asuka tried to hoist herself out of the plug but collapsed. She was shaking, gripped with fear. Then she realized her mother was right there.

"I'm disappointed in you Asuka." Kyoko uttered under her breath to her daughter. She sucked in a breath to say something more when she was interrupted.

"Is there a problem?" Ritsuko Akagi asked.

Kyoko whirled around to the Evangelion Technical director, who was now crossing the loading platform towards Kyoko. Kyoko's eyes darted from Ritsuko's face to the folder she was holding, marked 'UNIT 02 TEST SCH-'. Beside her, Maya had her headset in and was also staring at Kyoko.

Kyoko looked back at Ritsuko. "Only minor complications with synchronization testing. We accomplished 44% at least, a record for unit 02."

"I see. At the cost of pushing your fourteen year old daughter to the limit?"

Kyoko winced at Ritsuko. "You of all people... don't think you can hold some ethical concern over me, Akagi. You and I have both sacrificed much to get to where we are today." Turning back to her daughter in a smooth motion she grabbed Asuka's wrist and hoisted her up. The girl struggled under her mother's grasp and muttered softly.

Maya swallowed and tried to move forward, but Ritsuko checked her with a hand while Kyoko's back was turned. When Maya looked to Ritsuko, the doctor shook her head slightly.

Kyoko said to her daughter, "Go clean up." She gently shoved her daughter, who started walking slowly, shakily, towards the staircase to descend to the main walkway.

Ritsuko watched her go, then turned to Kyoko. "My concern is technical, doctor. If you drive the second children took hard, she will collapse, and there is no guarantee that we can find a replacement in a timely fashion to keep unit 02 operational. Moreover," Ritsuko stepped forward and indicated the folder she held, "You are operating Unit 02 beyond the recommended test limits. Prolonged activity will eat into the maintenance budget, and I will be forced to alert the Commander and chief science officer."

Kyoko stared coldly at Ritsuko. "I know what I'm doing, and it is necessary to maintain the synchronization ratios at acceptable levels. That is my responsibility, doctor. All you need to do is worry about the machines and assuring Unit 01 is at operational levels."

Ritsuko, still wincing, said, "Shinji's high synchronization rates are not a reflection on Asuka, doctor, or her performance."

"That is not for you to decide." Kyoko interrupted, who then started striding off the platform, "Stick to your purview Akagi, or _I_ will go to the Commander to report your breach of authority."

Ritsuko let her go without challenge, and sighed when Kyoko was out of earshot. Maya, listening to all this, had been fretting until Kyoko was gone. "Doctor, we have to-"

Ritsuko interrupted her with a held up hand. Lowering it, she said, "I don't like it either Maya, but the doctor is right. And I know the commander's only concern is making sure all of the machines- and their pilots- are performing at peak capability. Nothing more."

Maya looked down, sadly. "But it's burning her out. What are we defending if we're doing this to... to kids?"

"Because we have no choice. We have to rely on them." Ritsuko replied, taking a step towards the stairs. "But," She looked over at the back of Eva 02's head, "I agree. We shouldn't heap more problems on them than we have to."

* * *

The Comm window finally opened in Shinji's cockpit. It was Ritsuko.

"We're going to do another synchronization test today Shinji," She said, "Are you ready?"

Shinji spread out from where he had brought his legs up to the pads of the seat. Grabbing the handles again he said, "Is Asuka okay?"

"She's fine Shinji," Ritsuko said, "She's just under a lot of stress. Don't worry about it for now, Doctor Zeppelin has the situation under control."

That didn't reassure Shinji in the slightest. "I don't know..."

Ritsuko, in the booth, saw the synchronization level dip some. She exchanged a look with Maya before she turned back to the monitor. "The best way you can help Asuka now is to focus on the task in front of you. Let's complete this synchronization test, then move on to the next thing." She hesitated, then added, "I'll see what I can do to help Asuka for you."  
"Y-You will?" Shinji asked, perking. His synch level also perked slightly.

Ritsuko smiled. "I promise. Now, let's begin."

* * *

Asuka took a longer time than usual in the showers to rinse herself off, just staying under the water and letting it wash over her as she hid in the bathroom. The opaque stall separated her from the outside world where she could take a moment to cry when nobody was looking.

Her thoughts were interrupted, though, when her mother's voice spoke from just outside the stall. "You did better today."

Asuka blinked. Her mother had never entered the changing rooms before. One more veneer of safety had just been clawed away, and she felt herself cover up out of reflex. "Yes, mother."

"I suppose that will do for the moment, even though your little dramatic performance in the plug has not only embarrassed me, but also warranted a medical stay on synchronization tests. I hope this delay doesn't set back your gains today."

Asuka silently raised her head towards the shower ceiling in relief. At least she could keep that from her mother. "I'll try to maintain my progress, mother."

"Do not see the Third Child anymore. He will distract you from your studies when your grades are flagging. You need to perform better, Asuka." Kyoko said.

"I will, mother." Asuka said. Silence lingered for many moments, and Asuka hoped her mother had left the changing rooms. Whether she had or not, she increased the heat on the shower and ducked her body back into the warm water coursing down her body. If only she could wipe away concerns as easily as the LCL.

* * *

Yui Ikari's office was not as grand as Gendo's. The room was almost as spare as Kyokos, framed not with pictures of friends and accomplishments, but instead large plans and technical drawings had been put up. A large white board dominated the entire back wall, covered in formulas that even Ritsuko could not identify at a glance.

"It's uncharacteristic of you to be so maternal, doctor." Yui said without looking up from her computer.

Ritsuko looked down at Yui while the Chief Science Officer was typing on her computer. "I don't understand what you mean," Ritsuko said, "I came here only to assure that the Evangelions can remain operational through the life of the pilot."

"A duty assigned to Doctor Zeppelin, correct?"

Ritsuko winced. "That doesn't mean she's above protest, especially when her actions impact other departments."

Yui finally looked up from her computer at Ritsuko. "Yes." She said, turning her chair to face her guest, arms resting on the table with her hands folded together. "Doctor Zeppelin came in earlier to inform me about your 'intrusion into her affairs', as she put it."

Ritsuko was still wincing. "I do not need to point out that an Evangelion cannot function if the pilot has died. Moreover given the difficulties we've experienced with Rei in unit 01, I doubt we will be able to find a pilot who could replace Asuka in the event Kyoko runs her daughter into the ground. As of yet the Technical branch does not have a solution to replace pilots in the event of their death."

"Indeed." Yui replied. "At present we lack such capability."

Ritsuko decided to let that odd phrasing go, but she wouldn't forget it. "You also recall there is a mandate on how long a pilot should spend in synchronization with an Evangelion unit. It's a limit you yourself recommended after your first contact experiment."

"I remember the mandate Doctor." Yui replied.

Ritsuko looked down at the folder that she had put on Yui's desk before this conversation began. "You'll note that Evangelion Unit 02 has exceeded the recommended levels by at least 120% in this past week. I don't think I need to provide you with the cost assessments on maintaining the Evangelions for that long in a state other than total standby. The budget committee is not going to like it."

Yui nodded. "Then your concerns are on operation and cost-prohibition grounds. Commendable. You'll be pleased to know that I have already put a 24 hour suspension on tests until this time tomorrow, to reduce the operational burden on Unit 02."

Ritsuko blinked, holding back a smile. "Thank you Doctor."

Yui stood from her desk. "Don't expect any favors from Kyoko anytime soon." She grabbed folders that had been arranged at the end of the white monolithic table she used as a desk. Then she walked for the glass door and opened it. Holding it open for Ritsuko, she went on, "Also, I will not tolerate infighting between you and Doctor Zeppelin. You may have couched your reasoning in technical sense, but you will not intrude on Doctor Zeppelin's responsibilities. I will instruct her to remains hands-off with regard to technical instructions as well. If there is a dispute, you will come to me first. Understood?"

"Perfectly." Ritsuko replied as she walked through the door. "Thank you." She said over her shoulder.

Yui had already closed the door and was walking the other direction down the corridor.


	4. Chapter 4: The Prototype

**IV. THE PROTOTYPE**

Shinji woke up that morning without feeling as refreshed as he wanted. At least the ceiling was starting to familiar now, lit as it was by the open curtain to the back patio of his apartment. He grunted to get himself up and stopped the throbbing of his plugged in cell-phone. Yawning loudly, he got up and began going about his morning.

Thoughts. Thoughts as he prepared for today and reflected upon the actions of yesterday. Asuka was in trouble, and her mother had given him a direct warning.

'You should stay away from her if you know what's best for you.'

As he brushed his teeth he remembered the look Asuka had when he had told her he understood. Indeed, if his father were more vocal of a person he can imagine being just as actively berated. At least, it felt that way.

Father.

Shinji shook his head. Getting back to Asuka, he haddn't seen her at all since the disastrous test. While he was leaving to go to the bus stop he considered knocking on her door to ask if she was all right. He got as far as hesitating beside her apartment door before carrying on down the balcony. He didn't want to be a snoop, nor did he want to interrupt her assignments, or draw the ire of Doctor Zeppelin. He could check on Asuka later. In the very least, he could call the base and Ritsuko might be able to give him an update.

Shinji hoped Ritsuko was able to do something.

* * *

The bus ride was uneventful today. Shinji spent most of it looking at the sights of Tokyo-3. More and more he noticed the different people bustling about the busy city. He wouldn't have known it was attacked were it not for the signs of scarring on some of the buildings. He had yet to get a full explanation on what those earlier attacks had done to the city.

Before long he arrived again at Tokyo-3 Junior High School, and walked up to his classroom with his backpack slung over his shoulder. His first sight was seeing Hikari buried in a large stack of papers. "C-Class rep..." Shinji greeted.

"Hi Shinji!" The girl replied with a smile. She looked down at the papers, then up at him with a sympathetic look. "Sorry, I need to get these done before class starts. I'll talk to you later!"

"Okay," Shinji replied, also giving her a sympathetic smile, "Good luck!"

She smiled back before returning to her work. Shinji made his way through the desks and sat at the table that, at least, had been his yesterday. So far nobody objected. Once again he opened the cook book to his marked place, produced the pen and paper, and prepared to 'Learn.'

Class droned on as he expected it to. Looking around the room he noted that Suzuhara wasn't here, but Kensuke was. The otaku didn't have any models with him this time, but seemed concerned with a notebook of his own, jotting things down and looking at a book Shinji couldn't identify. Weird.

Rei was here, still staring out the window once again. Shinji remembered then that he had seen this woman naked. While it made him blush a little, so much had happened over the past two days that it was easy to avoid dwelling on it. Instead he decided to focus his thoughts, taking in a breath and releasing it.

He still didn't know what he, or any of the other students, were doing here.

* * *

When the lunch break came he had stood and tried to talk to Hikari. A gaggle of girls were surrounding her already though, so before he approached he had to muster his courage. He was too late, the Hikari stood up with them and starting to leave the room. Hikari did catch Shinji's eye, though, and waved to him. "I'll catch you later Shinji!"

"Ah, B-Bye!" Shinji replied with a wave. When she was gone he lowered his hand, and then his head followed as he trudged out of the classroom alone today. What did he expect? Of course she would have other friends- especially other girls. It was natural.

Still... at least she singled him out for a goodbye.

Without Suzuhara's specter hanging over the campus he was able to explore this time. He went to the roof to look out over Tokyo-3 while he ate lunch, sitting cross-legged before the fence and peering out at the distance.

His parents were on his mind. He had not seen them since the first day. Did they even know- or acknowledge- that he was here? It was because of them that he had come, to answer their summons.

He sighed as he ate. "I'm only here to pilot for them." He uttered and closed his eyes, "Is that all that is? Just to pilot this machine? And... why me, and not someone else?"

The last question lingered with Shinji most of all, why him? Asuka and evidently Rei were both pilots... in fact, he haddn't seen Rei's machine yet. Why not just make her the pilot of Shinji's unit? Maybe because she couldn't, somehow?

Perhaps he should ask Ritsuko...

* * *

The stacks of paperwork Hikari had been preparing actually had a use; Homework! Shinji spent the last ten minutes of class a little in awe of the fact that he now had an assignment. It was a research paper to complete over the weekend... about life before the Second Impact.

When class was dismissed he was preparing his things to go. He became aware of someone standing over him only a second before looking up and seeing Rei standing over him. He sucked in a breath.

Rei spoke simply. "Doctor Akagi wants you to report to the cages by 4 today. That is all." Then she turned and started off to leave the classroom. Noticing she wasn't carrying anything with her, Shinji looked over at her desk. Her assignment was still on it.

He turned to call Rei back but she had already left the classroom. He was, though, pleasantly surprised to see Hikari advancing down the desks towards him. "What was that about?" Hikari asked, "I've never seen Rei get up and talk to anyone like that."  
"S-She just wanted to deliver a message." Shinji replied as he slipped the last of this things in his backpack. He glanced at his cell phone... no missed calls or text messages... Pocketing his phone he looked at Hikari. "S-Suzuhara wasn't here today."

"No." Hikari replied, a little crestfallen. She sighed, "I'm not surprised. He's done this before, when his sister was..." She trailed off.

Shinji asked her, "Do you know where she's being treated?"

Hikari blinked. "Honestly Shinji, nobody's sure if she's alive or dead. Suzuhara... won't tell anyone either way.."

"O-Oh." Shinji replied, crestfallen. How many people had Eva killed inadvertently?

Hikari took in a breath as the last of the students filed out of the room. "Anyway, Homework! I know you were just itching for an assignment. I told you," She leaned closer to him, "He could surprise you!"

"Y-Yeah," Shinji smiled and replied in a mocking tone, "He sure got me!"

Hikari laughed with Shinji. Then, smiling at him again, she said, "If you need help, don't' be afraid to ask me. Remember, I'm a tutor, and I'd love to help you."

Shinji nodded. "I-I remember. I'll think about it! I, uh, actually need to look at the assignment again."

"It's easy." Hikari said as they walked out of the classroom and Hikari started locking it up. "You just need to pick a topic and start looking it up! If you want extra points," She turned to look at him as they walked down the hall, "Cite your sources too. If you're using the internet, don't use Wikipedia."

"W-Wikipedia?" Shinji asked. Hikari paused.

"You don't know what Wikipedia is?"

"I-I don't have a computer!" Shinji replied, "I don't have internet access, my aunt and uncle wouldn't let me have it!"

Hikari made a disbelieving, mock-exasperated sigh, "Mister Ikari you have a lot to learn. Hey, how about this; why don't you come to my house over the weekend and I can help you with your assignment."

Shinji perked. He had never been invited to a girl's place like this before. "Really?"

Hikari nodded. "Really! I'm happy to help. Besides, helping you figure this out will help me figure out what I want to do for my topic."

"Sounds great!" Shinji said. A thought occurred to him. "U-Uhm... may I have your number? I-I don't know my schedule yet."

Hikari looked up at him and saw the bit of heat rising in Shinji's face. She smiled and couldn't help herself from giggling. "Sure," She said, taking the cell phone that Shinji handed her. They both stopped in the hall for Hikari to program her number, then handed the phone back to him. "Here you go."

Shinji looked at the number. "Do you want mine?"

"Sure!" Hikari replied as she opened her bag and pulled out her own cell phone. Shinji programmed in his number, then handed it back. She looked at the number also, before closing it. "Thank you Shinji! Now I can call you whenever I need a hand!"

"S-Sounds great!" Shinji replied. And, he thought to himself, he would likely come over to help, too.

Shinji waved goodbye to Hikari at the gate and watched her start walking down the sidewalk. She must live nearby... Shinji glanced at his phone again to check the time, then pocketed his phone and started walking for the nearest entrance to the base. It was twenty after three... he would be a bit early, but that was never a problem before in any other circumstance.

He wondered how Asuka was doing.

He paused at the sidewalk to think about that question. He knew she had a cell phone, but he didn't have her number. A simple text to ask her how she was doing would have been nice. He wondered if she was okay...

* * *

Ritsuko Akagi was looking over the maintenance reports from Unit 02 as she sat on the Eva 01 side of the cage overwatch office. The plug on Unit 02 had been cleaned and the unit had passed the Alexander limit for maintenance. That was reassuring, at least if they had to go into battle now it wouldn't be a significant strain on the unit. She sipped at her coffee.

Maya was standing beside her with a tablet. Looking between it and the readouts, she finally paused to look at Ritsuko. "Are you sure this is the right thing to do," She asked, "I mean, we ARE going behind Doctor Zeppelin's back, doing this."

"She won't notice." Ritsuko replied. She sipped her coffee again before setting it down, "This is more a matter of sentiment over performance. Kyoko won't see this coming because it never occurs to her to approach a problem with a carrot instead of a stick. Frankly, I wouldn't put money on that woman caring for a chia pet, less her own daughter."

Maya looked up and down the hall. It seemed like everyone else was too involved in their own work to have noticed.

"I don't care if she knows what I think of her. She probably knows already." Ritsuko said.

Maya leaned forward. "Why is she like this, though? Is it just the way she is?"

Ritsuko sighed and stared out the window absently. "No, something happened to her when she was in Germany. Many of us are not sure what. The details are still classified even from me, but she wasn't always like this."

Ritsuko remembered the first time she met Kyoko Zeppelin nearly fifteen years ago. She was a different woman, then. Wincing, she can remember down to the month when things changed. She had wondered at the time if it was a phase, perhaps something in her marriage... yet...

"I feel so bad for Asuka though..." Maya said, "as a daughter and pilot. The stress is killing her."

Ritsuko's thoughts moved away from Kyoko. "There's a school of thought that says stress either makes or breaks a person."

"Maybe, but how often do they say that about children?" Maya replied.

Ritsuko didn't answer.

Maya decided to change the subject. "Rei called, Shinji was notified. He's probably on his way now, but I can call him to check if you like."

"I hope that girl didn't break cover." Ritsuko said, "Sometimes she can be too straightforward. At least we can rely on her terseness to cover for her naivety."

"Are we that paranoid about base security?" Maya asked, "In the school?"

Ritsuko shook her head. "It's not the school, students, or faculty that we're worried about. But it is an area where our pilots go, and anyone with a plant in the school may be able to pick up on details of NERV operations if our pilots are careless. NERV has too many enemies, and giving them any extra leverage to investigate us may turn up too many rocks for the human race to handle."

Maya had been caught on one thought. "NERV has enemies?"

"All organizations have opponents, Maya. Just look at us vs Kyoko." Ritsuko said as she straightened herself in the operations chair. "There was never an organization anywhere that didn't have an opponent over some thing." She turned to Maya, "On another matter, did you bring File 7A-113?"

"Oh!" Maya replied and slipped the envelope out from under her tablet. "It's here."

Ritsuko took it and opened it up. "I suppose Kyoko and I have to disagree on everything pertaining to these Evangelions- from pilots to technical matters. I wouldn't be surprised if she wanted to change all of their colors too."

Maya asked, "Is that for the reactivation of unit 00? Is it possible?"

"I think so." Ritsuko replied, "All my technical expertise says it will work. Yui Ikari knows more about these machines than anyone else on this base, besides me, and she says it will work too."

Maya shook her head. "Why is Doctor Zeppelin so opposed to it? Does she think it wont' work?"

"She could be paranoid about the synchro-inversion we faced last time. But we already have two operational Evas and enough experience to fix a lot of problems. No, I think she just doesn't want to see me proven right on something."

"So..." Maya said, "No chance it'll result in a thermonuclear explosion if it goes wrong, then?"

Ritsuko hesitated. "Where did you hear that?"

"U-Um..." Maya said, "It's just one of the things the guys suggested."

"Your boyfriend, perhaps?"

Maya, stunned, suddenly stiffened. "A-Aoba isn't my boyfriend!"

Ritsuko leaned on a fist as she stared at Maya. "I was wondering if I was hallucinating when I saw the two of you in that coffee shop."

"T-That was you?!" Maya replied.

Ritsuko smiled. "I know it may be hard to believe, but I see the surface on occasion."

"S-Senpai..."

"Relax," Ritsuko replied, "I may have my days when I'm heartless and uncompromising, but even I can understand wanting some exposure to irreverent men who make us laugh. I think that's how Captain Katsuragi manages to stay sane working here. Besides, you could do worse."

Maya was still blushing. Ritsuko then asked, "I also presume you wanted this evening off? I saw the request go across my desk this morning."

"Y-Yes, after the test." Maya replied, "We wanted to see that new Pixar movie that came out." She smiled, "But today I wanted to come in to see Shinji."

"I see." Ritsuko replied, "During the day you give your attentions to Shinji, and at night you give yourself to Aoba? My, Maya, I didn't know you had it in you."

Maya blushed. "D-Doctor! I-It's not what you think!"

Ritsuko smiled. "Relax, I'm teasing. Though... sometimes I wonder about that boy."

Maya, recovering, asked, "Is there anything wrong with Shinji?"

"No, I wouldn't say that." Ritusko replied, "And I'm not just referring to him turning our operations upside down. Somehow he was able to score the highest synchronization rates on his first try, with no experience. I'd be curious to see his MARDUK report to figure out why he was chosen, but that's Kyoko's territory. Still... out of our three children so far, he's the most mellow. He doesn't have Rei's disconnect from social events nor Asuka's baggage. And now he's here, making friends."

Ritsuko glanced at the time and then said, "Well, Shinji will be here any minute. Best start getting the cages ready for him to arrive."

"Y-Yes doctor!"

"You know, to set up the proper atmosphere for contact."

"D-Doctor!"

* * *

Shinji arrived at the cockpit gantry ten minutes after four, in his plugsuit. "Sorry," He said sheepishly to Maya as he walked to the plug, "I-I got lost."

"No worries Shinji!" Maya replied, "Just get in the plug. There ya go."

Shinji took the cockpit seat once more and looked up at Maya. "M-Maya... why are you blushing?"

"N-Nothing!" Maya replied, making a smile, "Ah... If you're ready to go, so are we!"

"Yeah!" Shinji replied simply.

"Okay!" Maya replied and gestured to the gantry crew. The hatch started to close.

In the darkness, Shinji muttered, "What was that all about?"

The familiar sensations returned. The plug rammed forward. He closed his eyes to listen through the LCL chamber filling, and the resultant light show. Once again he waited for the main flash, then opened his eyes.

Shinji's English was... fragmentary, at best. He had not been brought up in it as much as some of his peers had. If he ever made it to high school he was hoping to take it to understand more of it. Right now, he could only understand one collection of four letters.

LOVE

The words were gone before he could catch the next one. He leaned back in the chair of his humming cockpit, wondering why that word had appeared to him. Love. Why would that be here?

"You all in, Shinji?" Maya's voice asked.

"Y-Yes!" Shinji replied as he sat up to look at the communications window.

Ritsuko responded. "Very good Shinji. We're going to be doing something a little different today. I'll be leaving you in Maya's capable hands while I check on something else."

"W-Where are you going?" Shinji asked.

"You'll see in a moment." Ritsuko replied, "But first, Maya is going to teach you how to walk."

Maya, nodding, turned to the pickup. "Your synchronization rate is stable enough that we can move into the next phase of training. We're preparing to drain the cage you are in and move you to another area so you can exercise."

Ritsuko added, "We'll have all afternoon to train you Shinji. And for graduation, you'll be supervising the reactivation of another Evangelion unit."

Shinji blinked. "R-Reactivation? I-Is Asuka okay?"

"Asuka's fine Shinji, it's not her unit you will be looking after." Ritsuko replied.

Shinji leaned back in the chair. "I-It's Rei, isn't it?"

"Correct." Ritsuko said.

* * *

The sensation of feeling the 'suspension liquid' drain off the surface of the Evangelion was a little odd, Shinji thought. It was like staying in the bath tub when it was draining... except while standing up. It wasn't something he ever thought he would experience. It took three minutes to complete.

After that, his next surprise was the walls separating. The Evangelion's clamp mechanisms framing the unit's sides undocked from the walls and rolled backward. Knowing how to work the camera now, Shinji inspected his Evangelion's unloading from multiple angles. The unit, standing and locked upright between two towers, was being rolled backward onto a rail-mounted gantry.

"H-How far does this rail system go?" Shinji asked.

Maya was there to answer for him, still communicating from the office. "This rail system can send you all over Tokyo-3, Shinji. When an Angel attacks you'll be sent along it to the surface to prepare for battle. This is also how we'll send you supplies, to specially marked buildings."

Shinji nodded. It made sense, and he had been wondering how the robot got to the surface. He inspected the rail lines as the Evangelion was moving.

Maya came back. "We're moving you to another enclosed area Shinji, and we'll also be relocating there to continue try-outs. In the meantime, you'll be in touch with the primary command center. We'll reestablish contact with you in say, ten minutes?"

"Okay." Shinji replied.

Maya smiled and the window closed.

Shinji sat in the cockpit for another moment, listening to the humm of the cockpit and the distant grinding of the platform rails.

His attention was taken again by a new window opening. It was a new face, a bespectacled man wearing a similar uniform to the one Maya wore. "Hello Shinji, I am Makoto Hyuga, one of the operators on the bridge. We have you on our screens, just sit tight."

"O-Ohkay." Shinji answered.

"Good. You can contact us on the main communications channel if you have any problems. We expect your ETA to the testing block in two minutes."

"T-THank you."

"Don't mention it." Hyuga replied and the transmission cut off.

Shinji brought his legs up to the seat while he waited. After another moment he stretched his legs back out again and grasped the butterfly handles. Maya had told him yesterday that the Evangelion could be commanded just by thinking about it. He didn't want to try much, but he thought about wiggling the fingers of the Evangelion.

As he watched on the monitors, they did. En-route to the cages, slowly, he practiced trying to identify which fingers to wiggle as he did. He smiled more and more as he was able to decipher how the system worked. "I-I did it!"

A moment later Maya came back on-line. "Shinji? We're back. We're located in a null zone test block at the far end of the cages complex. We use this area for in-depth practicing, which you're getting now. You'll be here in a minute, and then we'll teach you how to walk!"

"O-Ohkay... "Shinji replied.

After a pause Maya added, "I'm told it will be really easy. I think you already got the basics, I saw you wiggling the fingers of the Eva earlier. We can monitor your unit's activity through our computer system."

Shinji nodded as he looked down at the Eva's fingers. "H-Hey, Maya," Shinji asked then, "C-Can I ask you something?"

"Anything."

"Why am I the pilot?" Shinji asked.

Maya hesitated on that one. "To be honest, I don't know. I think it has something to do with your brain patterns being in synch with the evangelion's operating system. I presumed you were recommended to us by a selection committee and your father chose you to come here."

"I-I see..." Shinji replied. He had been hoping for a technical explanation.

Just then the walls of the railways system opened up into a brightly lit area. It looked similar to the walls of the Evangelion's hangar, just as brightly lit and lined with cranes and equipment. The large hallway stretched back some distance, it looked like Shinji could run down it without a problem.

"Anyway," Maya was saying, "The control interface of the Evangelion is predominantly directed by thought. The basic of it is, you need to visualize your machine performing the action in order to perform the action. In theory, at higher synchronization level, it is almost synonymous with moving your own body."

Shinji glanced down at the handles. "Then... what are these handles for?"

"Well... um..." Maya's voice responded, "I... guess they're in there to help you focus and hold on to? The triggers work, but you're not armed at the moment."

Shinji was inspecting the handles a little closer. "So they're useless then?"

Maya said after a moment, "If your mad, you could pump them and maybe something could happen..."

Ritsuko's voice suddenly cut in. "The handles do nothing Shinji. They're in there to help the pilot control the machine by providing a kinetic analogue to interact with. For example, a trigger is normally associated with firing a gun, even though when you have a weapon you do not need to press the trigger in order to shoot it."

"Oh." Shinji replied. He had been afraid to get anywhere near the buttons on the butterfly handles in case they were connected to something dangerous.

"In any event," Ritsuko added, "You'll understand soon with some practical action."

Just then the moving scaffold slowed and came to a stop with a thud that reverberated across the Eva.

* * *

The office overlooking the Evangelion was shoulder-high compared to the Eva. Right now, Eva-01 was just to the left of the windows. Maya had settled in front of the large control station with the rest of the monitoring staff taking seats at the secondary stations flanking it. Ritsuko was standing behind Maya.

"Okay Shinji," Maya said, "There's one key thing you need to know before we proceed. Your Evangelion is not entirely self-sufficient. Right now main power is being supplied to an umbilical cable connected to the back of your unit."

Shinji checked this with his camera displays. "Ah!" The massive cable connection was jutting out of the lower back of the Evangelion.

Maya continued, "During main operations your Evangelion will be connected to this cable. It may be necessary to change it, and we can cover that today. If you are forced to seperate from main power your Evangelion has an operational time limit of five minutes under battery power. After that, it will shut down and your plug will switch over to emergency life support. Got it?"

"I-I think so."

"Good!" Maya replied, "Now, let's start with the basic of the basics. Balance. You'll start by getting a feel for the Evangelion when it's standing. We're releasing the clamps in 3... 2... 1."

Shinji had been bracing himself. Once the clamps disengaged, the persistent feeling on his arms fell away, and he felt he could relax a little better. The Evangelion hunched forward.

Maya spoke to him through the pickup. "Balance looks... good. Great! Now your next step... is to take your first step! You've moved the fingers before, now imagine taking a step."

"O-Okay..." Shinji said and tried to picture it. The foot of the Evangelion raised off the platform.

It occurred to him with wonder then how a massive, multi-story robot could actually walk like a man. Puzzling over how that could work halted the Evangelion's foot in mid-stride, and his balance was of. "Shinji!" Maya cried.

"Aahh!" Shinji cried.

The Rumble of Evangelion 01's topple rumbled down the chamber for a while as the Eva face-planted on the ground. The team observing made sighing sounds, but there were a few chuckles.

"Well," Ritsuko said, "Not everyone's perfect on their first try."

Shinji wailed from the cockpit, "S-Sorry..."

Maya spoke into the pickup. "It's all-right Shinji! Uh..."

Ritsuko leaned forward to use the microphone. "Shinji, get up."

"B-But I can't! I-I don't know how to-"

Ritsuko spoke again, patiently, "Just get up. It's not that hard."

"But I can't! How can I..."

"Then close your eyes and try again." Ritsuko said.

Shinji blinked, then did as she instructed.

_He was on the floor of his apartment, just after taking a tumble out of bed. His face was mashed against the cold floor and it hurt. Grunting, he moved his arms out and pushed off the floor. He gathered his legs beenath him and pushed off the ground first with his hands, then his knees. He stood up._

He stood up.

Shinji opened his eyes. Evangelion 01 was standing again in the testing block, just off the platform.

"It's as simple as that." Ritsuko said.

Shinji nodded as he worked the arrangement in his mind. He could control the Evangelion... almost wihtout thinking too much about it. The action had to be about as incidental as if he had done it himself.

But he had to _imagine he was manipulating the Eva_. To test it he tried balling the hand into a fist and raising it.

The purple hand raised on command.

Nodding he tried the other fist. Looking at them both with his head, he splayed the hands out into palms and clapped them together.

The air blast of the colossal hands also echoed down the hall.

"Now you're getting it!" Maya called to him over the comm.

Shinji sucked in a breath and then performed the same procedure with walking, closing his eyes and just imagining the walk forward...

The Evangelion started its stride down the long hallway with the umbilical cable trailing behind.

The crew in the command cockpit cheered as the Evangelion was making confident strides down the hallway. Maya spun to Ritsuko with a beaming smile of accomplishment on her face.

Ritsuko nodded, then leaned forward. "Congratulations Shinji."

"Th-Thank you!"

"Now let's try it with your eyes open."

* * *

By the time Shinji glanced at the chronometer next, it was already half past seven. "W-What? It's already 7:30?!"

"But look how far you've come." Ritsuko replied.

Shinji was still in the testing chamber, holding an empty pallet rifle. He had learned how to stand, walk, crouch, side-step, and a whole other host of maneuvers. He had picked up objects to handle them delicately, pushed obstacles, thrown dummy explosives, and had practiced plugging in the umbilical cable in nearly half a dozen times. He also had plenty of practice opening the compartment for the progressive knife and returning it to storage.

As formidable as the machine was, not thinking about it had brought him far. He couldn't say he was uncomfortable using the machine, though. But fighting in it?

He wasn't sure, yet.

Ritsuko's voice broke in again. "Now Shinji, it is time to graduate from basic training. Next door is the test chamber for reactivating unit 00. We want you to move inside and restrain unit 00 if it goes out of control."

"O-Out of control?" Shinji asked, "W-What would that look like?"

"I think you'll figure it out." Ritsuko replied.

* * *

Unit 00 was still in the yellow testing paint it had when it was last activated in this chamber eight months ago. Now, clean from the bakelite, it was standing up against the back wall of the testing chamber in restraints.

Evangelion 01 was standing in, essentially, the doorway back to the rest of the complex. It was unarmed at the moment, Shinji was holding position by the wall.

Ritsuko spoke over the comms, "We're just finishing the last of the configuration in here Shinji, Rei hasn't even boarded the unit."

Shinji nodded. "I understand." He looked over the other yellow-and-grey unit. The head was different, being a single mono-eye peeking out from under a sharp cap. Another large glass eye-dome was on the top of the head, but Shinji wasn't sure if it would be used to see. The Eva lacked his massive shoulder blades, and a few other small details were different.

He turned his attention to the technicians working along the back of the unit, by the exposed plug. He noticed a couple of figures were not in orange jumpsuits. Using the Eva's zoom function he got a closeup on the pair, and was startled to see not just Rei, but Shinji's father, also.

Shinji tried adjusting the audio pickup but he couldn't hear anything beyond static when he turned the gain to max. He couldn't tell what they were talking about, he had to be content with just watching.

He had never seen his father so... happy. A smile was on his face as he was looking down at Rei. Shinji couldn't see her expression from here, her back was turned to him. Shinji watched the scene for a moment more before he turned the zoom feed off and brought his feet up to his chest, lowering his head to his knees.

* * *

Maya noted the dip in Shinji's synch rates. "Shinji," She said from the control complex overlooking the test area, "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine." Shinji replied distantly.

Maya hesitated, but Shinji's synch ratios were stabilizing. She looked across the complex to Ritsuko, but Doctor Akagi was already busy looking over the master control console that commanded this bay.

Ritsuko was double-checking everything. It was her neck on the line here- not only as the NERV sciences technical department head, but also as one of the major proponents to reactivating Unit 00. It was even more imperative now to get the unit operational now that there was a risk of losing the second child.

A woman yawned very loudly beside her. Ritsuko leaned up to stand and took off her glasses. "Enjoy your leave time?"

Captain Misato Katsuragi put her hands on her hips. "Yeah, you can say that."

Ritsuko turned to face the commander of NERV's tactical division. "You'd better tread lightly around here, Captain. Kyko's out for blood and she'd have you written up for intoxication before you knew what hit you."

Misato threw her friend a scandalized look. "Me, drinking just before the job? What makes you suggest such a thing?"

Ritsuko moved to another instrument panel to inspect it. "The only times I can recall you wearing perfume so strong it still reeked the next day was when you were on a special date with 'Mister K', or when you were trying to conceal the stench of alcohol on your breath. And after all, here you are at the base at nearly eight o'clock. With most of the day gone."

Ritsuko turned to face Misato. "If I were to guess, I'd say you were doing both up until the last minute."

Misato had her hands crossed, her eyes avoiding Ritsuko in a classic display of denying guilt. "Tch," Misato said, "You're no fun."

Ritsuko, smiling, moved to another console. "Besides, Kaji came by to see me this morning to pay me a visit, probably before seeing you." Ritusko leaned over the console and tapped some buttons. "I think he was concerned if anyone else had any say over you. I told him you were completely free, which may have given him the green light he was looking for."

Misato glanced sideways, her arms still crossed. "He told me it was completely his idea."

Ritsuko continued smiling. She got the data she needed, leaned up, and crossed to stand beside Misato. "There's a new child here."

Misato moved to the glass and Ritsuko followed. "I wasn't completely cut off from the universe Ritsu, I saw the reports. Is he any good?"

"So far he's been a good boy." Ritsuko replied as she and Misato stared at Evangelion 01. "He's taken to the Evangelion remarkably fast. He has just the right amount of imaginative thinking to grasp some of the advanced concepts. He's broken quite a few records on Evangelion handling also."

Misato grunted. "That's not hard. We had... what... months before Asuka could wrap her head around some of the performative concepts? And don't get me started with Rei."

Ritsuko shrugged a little. "Rei you can hardly falt, she was the first test subject. As for Asuka..."

Misato had known Ritsuko since college, so knew that her pause had some weight to it. "What's wrong?"

Ritsuko sighed. "As much as I hate to admit it, I'm worried. Kyoko's-"

She cut short as the main door opened to the control area and another batch of technicians entered. Kyoko was following them, and seeing Ritsuko she changed course to approach the two women. "I hope you're satisfied with this experiment you've staged, Akagi. I'm to remind you that I have co-say in terminating the experiment if even the slightest thing looks out of place."

"I haven't forgotten." Ritsuko replied. Per headquarter's direction, detonation charges had been installed through Eva 00's armor plating. If one hit the correct button, Unit 00 would be reduced to gibblets.

Nobody was certain what would happen to Rei in that event.

Kyoko turned and advanced towards the main control panel. "Let's get this over with."

Ritsuko watched her walk off. She and Misato exchanged glances before Ritsuko walked over to the station Maya was manning. Leaning towards the microphone she triggered the talk function. "Shinji, we're set to begin in five minutes. Are you ready?"

"Y-Yes Doctor." Shinji replied, "I'm ready."

"Very good." Ritsuko replied and leaned away from the console. Misato had come to stand beside her.

"That Shinji?" Misato asked.

"That was Shinji Ikari."

Misato was nodding in satisfaction. "Sounds like a cute kid. When do I get to meet him?"

* * *

Shinji watched the yellow-plated Evangelion as the technicians retreated into doors in the wall behind it. His father was long gone, and Rei had since entered the plug. He swallowed nervously as he watched the other Evangelion.

"Let's begin," Ritsuko's voice echoed in the room and through his audio pickup, "We'll start from procedure 14-6-18. Team Alpha, I want you to look at the synapse C systems on startup. Maya, you're on general monitoring and contact info second. Kyoko, I'll leave pilot condition to you. Now then, ladies and gentlemen, let's get started."

Shinji wondered what Rei was thinking about inside her own control plug. What was Rei feeling in there? And why was she… no… he wouldn't worry about all that now. He had to focus on the test.

"Preliminaries cleared. Problems 387 and 848 inherent in last activation test have been cleared. Standing by for test unit operational independence." Maya announced. Then, "Releasing clamps."

Evangelion 00 slouched as the clamps released, and the lights on the sides of the unit came on.

"Very good." Ritsuko said, "Now, stage two."

"Beginning startup." Maya said.

Shinji grasped the butterfly controls, and his hands felt tense.

Another technician spoke. "Problems 991 and 1048 inherent in last test have been cleared."

"Well that's a relief. I suppose this means it won't miss when it tries to hit the command center?" Kyoko uttered.

Ritsuko ignored it. "Maya, you have go for stage two."

Shinji heard Maya's nervous breath over the speakers before she announced, "Commencing startup. Skipping A-level procedures, plug has already been inserted. Beginning command line transfer sequence…. Startup."

The centermost eye on the mask of Evangelion unit 00 flashed on. Shinji tensed.

"That's standard Shinji. Relax, you'll know it if it goes berserk." Ritsuko said specifically into his cockpit. Shinji heard no double echo outside. He did as he was told and let the tension out of his hands.

"Passing phase two… moving to phase three…." Another technician said.

Shinji waited, tensing again.

"And... passed!" Maya exclaimed, "Looks like synergy is in acceptable limits. Reading telemetry feed from Evangelion 00."

Ritsuko's voice spoke through the comm. "You can take your hands off the button now, Kyoko. Rei? How are things in there?"

"Everything is normal, Doctor Akagi." Rei's voice replied, "Unit 00 has completed startup and is functioning normally."

"Very good." Ritsuko said.

Just then alarms started to shrill in the hangar. Shinji, blinking, started to tense. "W-What's going on?"


	5. Chapter 5: Fortress

V. FORTRESS

In less than half a minute, Misato was calling the bridge. There was no evidence of any intoxication in her tone as she was on the phone. "Hyuga, status."

"We just confirmed a blue blood pattern on an unidentified object approaching from the south-east. The Nebukawa observation post confirms it will pass over them and intrude over our airspace in under an hour."

"Shit." Misato grunted, "Order the city to defensive mode and begin evacuation procedures. Bring the city to battle stations and issue orders to ready the Evangelions."

"Ma'am," Hyuga said, "Per the testing directives, Evangelion 00 has been restricted from deployment."

"That doesn't stop you from readying Unit 02. Unit 01 is already manned, get it ready for deployment. I'm headed for the bridge."

"Yes ma'am." Hyuga said.

* * *

Shinji's mind did a double take. "W-What?"

Ritsuko was speaking to Shinji as his Evangelion was back in the restraints, moving along the railways. "I'm afraid that's how it is at the moment Shinji. The commander has a restriction on Unit 00, so it's just you and Asuka."

Shinji squeezed the handlebars. "But... I'm not ready."

Ritsuko's voice responded after a pause. "I'm afraid you don't have a choice, Shinji. I think you're more ready than you give yourself credit for."

"B-But..." Shinji stammered.

"Shinji." Ritsuko said, "As the Technical Department leader and overseer of your training, if I say you're ready, you're ready. You're no more trained than Rei or Asuka were when they first started this."

Shinji swallowed. It still didn't give him any assurances he'd do well.

"It may be hard to believe, since they were here longer than you." Ritsuko said, "But they had to learn on the go, just as you will. It will be tough, but everyone here is completely dedicated to making sure you succeed. You won't be alone out there, either, since Asuka is going with you."

Concern piqued in Shinji. "A-Asuka is going out there? B-But..."

Ritsuko spoke after a moment. "It's not an ideal situation Shinji, none of this ever is. The best we can do is survive and use what we have."

"O-Okay." Shinji replied.

"Tactical information will be coming soon. Captain Katsuragi is headed to the bridge, once she's there she'll brief the two of you when you're prepared. Just hang tight, you'll be launching together."

"O-Okay." Shinji said again.

The SOUND ONLY plate disappeared, leaving Shinji alone in his humming cockpit.

He brought his knees back up to his chest and hugged them on the cockpit pad as he tried to control his nervousness. Combat. It was here.

He learned how to fire a gun only an hour ago. Now he would be using it to... fight?

To kill?

And Asuka... Asuka... How could she be in a condition to do this? The last time Shinji saw her she... she was...

He unfolded his legs. He grabbed the butterfly handles and tightened his grip. He took a big breath and let it out slowly, trying to focus.

He had to protect her.

He had to protect Hikari.

He had to protect Maya, Ritusko...

...father, and mother.

Yes, he thought as his grip tightened. Yes, even them.

* * *

Misato strode into the bridge with purpose. "Status?" She barked as she marched into the middle tier of the command post. Behind her Ritsuko, Maya, and Kyoko were also entering the bridge.

Two of the three primary technicians, Makoto Hyuga and Shigeru Aoba, were already on station. Maya was entering her chair as Hyuga reported, "Blood-mass spectrum readings are still blue. Target is classified as the fourth angel. It's projected course is downtown, somewhere between 8th and L streets."

Misato winced. "That's where the second went down. All right, we know where it's going. Let's give it a warm welcome. What's the status of the city defenses?'

It was Aoba who responded. "Laser emplacements are still incomplete. Kinetic batteries 001 through 144 are ready. Missile load-out has replenished from our previous sortie and is on standby. Attack wing is ready."

Misato nodded. "I want to see it."

The massive screen at the back wall of the command bridge flicked to life, simultaneous with the 3-layer hologram disappearing. The night sky was plastered on the display, and it took an Imagine Enhancement Overlay to reveal the outline of the object. A massive blue octahedron glinted in the moonlight as it glided over the water.

Misato uttered, "Not as dramatic as the previous forms. Where's the Pacific fleet?"

Hyuga responded, "They were caught out of position. The target appeared inside the defensive border."

Misato silently cursed the JDSF for not catching this earlier. Crossing her arms she formulated her plan. "We'll intercept this thing over Ninatoria. As soon as it clears the mountains, give it everything we have. Conserve ammunition until it enters engagement range with the Evangelions. Evangelion 02 will take point- the new kid will run support. Between the two of them we should be able to overload the A.T. Field and then hammer it with the rest of our conventional weaponry."

Nods and acknowledgments went around the room. Misato grunted under her breath, "At least the kid's pallet rifle will be a good distraction."

* * *

Asuka was still lacking sleep.

She had been drinking the canned coffee all the way from the changing area to the cages, and handed the empty canister to one of the ground technicians as she closed on the cockpit. She had done this before, and she needed the energy now to stay awake and alert for the battle that was about to come. Focused, she sat in the chair, and waited for the door of the plug to close over her before she reached forward and gripped the handle bars of her Eva. She braced against these as the plug was rammed in.

Asuka stared and watched the LCL enter the cockpit. She differed from Shinji in this regard, though she wouldn't know it, since she enjoyed the entire process of activating the Evangelion and being a part of it. Though her mother had driven her hard, it was always a wonder to experience the startup connection.

She had a reflex down for purging her lungs of air and inhaling the LCL. She caught the stars, sparkles, and rainbow patterns of the startup sequence of the cockpit.

And when the English phrase popped up before her, she was able to quickly read it. Her mother had dual citizenship in America, and both Japan and Germany benefitted from teaching the language. She was able to read it fluently.

But she disregarded it.

It didn't matter. No matter what it said, no matter what she may interpret out of it, she was still here. And her mother hated her.

Kyoko's voice came over the comm once the startup sequence was complete. "Asuka, your synch ratio is holding at 36%. I thought we were past this little problem."

Asuka didn't rise to it this time, because she didn't need to impress her mother. There was a battle coming, and she needed as few distractions as possible. "Evangelion 02," She said, "Reporting ready."

She didn't look at her mother's comm window but was aware of it out of the corner of her eye. "Just don't embarrass yourself this time." Kyoko toned before the comm window closed.

Asuka sighed out a tense breath. Good, her mother was out of the way for now. She flexed her fingers around the butterfly handles, and started to amass her courage for the battle to come.

She had played out her earlier performances in her head many times, and trained since then- hard- to do better for the next one. If this Angel was like the last, she would want a weapon she had practiced a lot with. With her mind she opened up the roster of weapons to request- they would be sent along with her unless she was overridden by the commander. Her eyes immediately chose one.

When asked, she said she would want the Magoroku Exterminate Sword.

* * *

The moon was full, rising over the mountains, when the Angel arrived in the target area. It was an almost picturesque view from the command center- the target silhouetted against the pale dot of the Earth's only satellite.

Pity it was coming to kill them.

"Open fire." Misato commanded.

The kinetic cannons mounted in the hills had been slated for naval warships. All of them opened fire from the opposite hills. Shells arced over the mountains to collide with the Angel, flaring the tell-tale octagonal A.T. fields in response. More cannons started opening fire from other batteries, and as the Angel coasted over the mountains, the automatic guns started firing.

Misato's arms were crossed as she watched the batteries engage the target- both on the main monitor and on the holographic display. "Main batteries from North and West quadrants are engaging. Automatic weapons are coming online, estimated three minutes to ammunition exhaustion."

"Right," Misato said, "Engage missiles."

Much of the skyline of Tokyo-3 had been reduced after the buildings were pulled back into the surface. The few that stood all had a purpose. For some of these high-rise buildings, camouflaged as office complexes, the surfaces opened and revealed 4-tube vertical launch missile racks. Massive rockets the size of early American mercury-redstone projectiles rocketed out of them and tilted in the sky, headed towards the Angel.

These projectiles all collided against the surface of the Angel's A.T. Field.

From the highest summit in the command post, Gendo Ikari and Fuyutuski were watching the display. "Mmh," Fuyutuski grunted as he crossed his arms, "A most spectacular waste of taxpayer money."

Misato was staring at the thing. "Any dent?"

Huyga had his eyes glued to the screens. "Minimal." He replied, "We can confirm the presence of the A.T. Field but haven't determined relative impact resistance."

Misato grunted. "I wish we had those lasers. All right, It's time to let the children out. Evangelion 01, Prepare for launch!"

After a pause Shinji's panicked voice said, "W-What?"

Ritsuko quickly stepped forward to activate the comm. "Shinji, you're going to draw fire from Asuaka. Just keep moving and stay evasive."

"R-Right!" Shinji replied and the comm window closed.

Misato winced, but kept her wry comment to herself. This is what they had to work with. "Ready Evangelion 02 on catapult 3. Once The kid is on his way, launch Asuka."

* * *

Shinji had very little warning he was going to launch. As Evangelion 01 sat in the launch cradles, he swallowed. He knew the rifle was right behind him in the scaffolding. As soon as he was deployed he had to grab the rifle, swing around, and open fire. It was as simple as that.

He was still nervous as-

The entire Evangelion rocketed upward suddenly and Shinji couldn't suppress the scream. Strangely he remembered something Maya had said about the LCL being an effective momentum-killer, but it sure didn't feel that way as the Evangelion flew upward. All pretense of battle and strategy left his mind as he just focused on trying not to black out.

Then suddenly, it was over. The ascent cut velocity before suddenly hitting its destination with a loud THUNK. Shinji had to regain his senses, and before he knew it, the door was open.

* * *

Huyga suddenly cried out, "High energy reaction within the target!"

"What?" Misato asked.

Hyuga continued, "It's accelerating and massing in on itself, it appears to be a particle beam charge!"

"What is the target?!" Misato barked.

Maya screamed into her comm, "Shinji, duck!"

* * *

Shinji wasn't the target.

As soon as Evangelion 02 hit the roof of the elevator building- several hundred meters away from the floating octahedron, the Angel had split into eight separate pieces. The geometry all changed form, and emitting from the center- a ruby red core- was a light stronger than the sun.

After three seconds a beam the thickness of a minivan suddenly sprang into light, penetrating the back of the elevator building and boring into the armor of Asuka's Evangelion. The light from the weapon illuminated Tokyo-3 as brightly as if the sun was overhead on midday.

Asuka screamed as the beam bored into her back, feeling like a power drill had been pressed into her shoulder blade. The pain was excruciating.

Asuka's screams were so loud and unexpected that most of the bridge crew cringed. Kyoko shouted, "Is her A.T. Field even up?!"

"A.T. Field is at maximum!" Maya cried, "Armor degrading! If we don't do anything soon she'll-"

"GET HER OUT OF THERE!" Misato screamed.

Bolts holding the scaffolding of Evangelion 02 upwards exploded and the massive multi-ton Evangelion plummeted back down the shaft with the support platform. The beam followed, cutting through the concrete and stone of the buildings as it perfectly stayed on target, tracing the Evangelion disappearing down the shaft.

Misato watched Evangelion 02's status desperately. It was Ritsuko who got her attention. "Misato, Shinji's still-"

The beam instantly flicked over to strike the elevator building Shinji occupied. He too, felt the excruciating pain as the laser drill bored into his shoulder. But as sudden as it hit, it was gone. As Shinji came to his senses he saw the whirring by of the shaft's lights. He looked up, and saw flame and debris raining down on him as the beam's destroyed debris tumbled down on the Evangelion.

He was safe.

* * *

"The target has gone silent." Hyuga announced.

Smoke and flame billowing out of the destroyed city was mingling with the remaining shells and missiles being thrown at the Angel with no effect. Misato had to watch the situation in shock before she collected her wits. "Cease fire." She said.

Kyoko was busy staring at the monitors for the pilots. "Second children is in critical condition, medical teams are being scrambled to the cages now. Third children has minimal damage."

Ritsuko was studying the boards for Evangelion status. "Unit 02, left scapula penetrated. Possible damage to the core, scrambling containment teams now. Emergency stop teams are assembling. Unit one, minor damage to hull structure, no evidence of internal compromise." She turned away from the station "I'm headed to the cages."

Misato balled her fists while Ritsuko retreated from the bridge. "That was our best shot, and it took out our Evangelions within fifteen seconds. Aoba, contact the JDSF and advise-"

"Cancel." Gendo said from above.

Heads whirled to look up at Gendo Ikari.

"Sir," Misato said, "The city defense and our Evangelions could not stop this thing. We need more firepower to immobilize it."

Fuyutsuki spoke next. "What is the status of the city's armored levels?"

The hologram changed to reflect the subterranean levels. Yui Ikari spoke, "Ablative and reactive armor levels are expected to withstand the blast possible from the Angel. Armor and Evangelion sinew is one thing, our composite armors are another."

Misato was wincing. "But it hasn't tried blasting through them yet, and we don't know how long the barriers will hold out under a sustained strike. What the hell is it doing?"

* * *

Yellow emergency sirens were spinning in the cage of Unit 02. Additional lights were brought on and playing over the Evangelion as the unit was cradled back into the cage.

From the burn wound on its back, blood was spurting out in a rhythmic pattern.

The technicians were working quickly in the cages. Racing up the side of the walls was an armature connected to a long hose. Speeding towards the hole it stopped just beside it and fired a thick stream of purple goo- liquid bakelite- into the hole to plug the hole.

Ritsuko raced in and demanded status reports. As the technicians responded to her she glanced at movement behind her to see Shinji's machine rolling into place. Quickly she walked across the hall to the computer desks managing Evangelion 01, activated the communications pickup, and opened a line to Shinji. "Shinji."

"Y-Yeah?"

"Stay put for the moment. If you get the all clear and you leave the plug, come to the control office."

"O-Ohkay."

* * *

Five minutes became ten, then twenty, before the stand-down call came from the bridge and Shinji was allowed to leave the entry plug. His feet patted down the long stairs, down the hallway to the dividing monitor office, and then up the short flight of stairs to that long hallway of a control center.

Ritsuko was still clearly busy, and Shinji didn't want to get in the way. Finally Ritsuko stood up and started down the hallway to the entrance where Shinji was waiting. "I"m sorry to keep you waiting Shinji."

"I-It's ok." Shinji replied.

"Walk with me?" Ritsuko asked and started down the steps into the control center.

Shinji swallowed and followed Ritsuko. The doctor started down the hallway in the direction of Evangelion 01. It continued out into the balcony that overlooked Evangelion 01's chest, which was right now undergoing repairs.

Ritsuko leaned against the railing to look at the machine and turned to Shinji. He also leaned against the railing and both stared at the Evangelion for a while.

Shinji broke the silence first. "I-Is Asuka going to be all right?"

"She's in the hands of the best doctors on the planet." Ritsuko replied, "She'll be fine."

Shinji wasn't sure if he could believe that. There wasn't anything he could do about it, though. "W-What... what was that thing?"

Ritsuko stared at the Evangelion as she pondered how to answer this question. "What I'm about to tell you Shinji, is classified. Do you know what this means?"

"I-I can't tell anyone." Shinji replied.

"Yes. Not anyone outside of the command staff, at least." Ritsuko said. She leaned up away from the railing and faced him. "What you saw up there, is what the Evangelions were made to fight. We call the thing that attacked us, an Angel."

"Angel?" Shinji repeated the English word, "B-But... I thought Angels were spirits... that helped people..."

"Your father, mother, and our superiors call them Angels." Ritsuko replied, "They don't tell us the reason. The rest of us know that they are coming here to this place, and if they reach the center of this geo-front, everyone will die."

"E-Everyone? D-Do you mean... people?"

"That's right Shinji, all life as we know it on Earth."

Shinji blinked. "T-That's crazy..."

"This Geofront isn't a natural formation Shinji," Ritsuko said, "It's perfectly spherical. It was discovered in the 1970s when the progenitor organization of NERV was expanding the facilities here in Hakone. We did not put it here, Shinji."

Shinji blinked. "S-So... wait... are you saying Aliens left it here?"

"We don't know who left it here Shinji, or why." Ritsuko replied, "Some theorize that it might be the original ark that spawned all life on Earth. That is one of the subjects your mother was researching, Shinji, before the Angels came. Now we have to stop them from researching the center of it, because we don't know what will happen."

Shinji's eyes dropped as he took that in. While he had seen the product of his parents research, this was the first time he heard of _what_ his parents had been doing here. Researching all of this. Making the Evangelions. But... for what, ultimately?

"It... It's hard to believe." Shinji said, closing his eyes and rubbing his face as his head hurt trying to make sense of it

Ritsuko looked down at Shinji. "You accepted the existence of the Evangelions easily enough."

Shinji gulped.

Ritsuko stepped closer to him. "You accepted that the angel was floating in the air without asking what was keeping it up. You accepted that you could breathe LCL, and all the other fantastic things here. If for our sake Shinji, please suspend your disbelief just a little further and accept these reasons why you are here."

When Shinji looked up at her, Ritsuko said, "This is the world your parents has built, Shinji. And defending this place is the reason he has asked you to come back here, because only you can do it."

Shinji looked from Ritsuko to the floor of the hangar again, trying to gather his feelings. His hand tightened on the railing. "S-So... So I'm a tool?"

Ritsuko blinked.

"I-I..." He swallowed, "I didn't want this! W-When I came here I-I wanted T-to... to know my f-father and mother again! N-Now I'm just a T-Tool..."

"Shinji."

Shinji turned to Ritsuko.

"Stop selling yourself short." Ritusko replied, stepping forward again and making Shinji step back. "In the time you've come here, you've mastered the Evangelion. You've navigated this complex situation that others would find difficult, and started to have an existence here in a place where you knew no-one."

She stopped in front of Shinji. "Also," She said a little softer, "You've made friends here. Maya would certainly count you among the people she likes, and I would also like to consider myself one of your friends. Perhaps in time, Asuka will too."

Shinji felt himself starting to tear up a little. Asuka... Hikari...

"I admit, I'd like to consider myself your friend too, Shinji."

Shinji reached a hand from the bars up to his face to wipe the tears from his eyes."T-Thank you."

"My pleasure Shinji." Ritsuko replied with a small smile. Then she asked, "Did you want to see Asuka?"

"C-Can I?"

"I'll take you there."

* * *

The Menace of Tokyo-03 was hanging over the center of town, now. Right over the spot the first attacker had exploded and disabled unit 01 months prior. The command bridge was silent, all of them watching the Angel on the main monitor.

Misato was thinking over all the tactical possibilities to destroy this thing, but Commander Ikari had forbidden the N2 bomb! And now that the Evas were practically one-shot... She crossed her arms. "Okay, let's explore other options. Aoba, what's our ammunition limit?"

"Thirty seconds left of continuous fire remaining in all batteries." The operator replied.

Misato grunted. "If we perform a saturation attack then there's no time for fallback. Is the attack wing still ready?"

"They're on stand-down now ma'am," Hyuga said, "But can be activated in two minutes."

Misato nodded. "That can add to our firepower, but we still need something to punch through it. Is the type 12 mortar ready?"

"Yes, the car is ready." Aoba said, "But ma'am," He turned, "It's not going to have the firepower necessary to punch through the A.T. field."

"No," Misato said, "But we can try to over-extend the A.T. field again to punch something through. If we hit it from all sides, that could stress the field."

Yui stepped forward. "That will not work."

Misato spun to listen to the Science Director's explanation.

Yui continued, "A.T. Fields are omnidirectional, and do not overheat. Attrition attacks will not erode the field as you are suggesting. We need to apply maximum power on one point in order to destroy it."

Misato turned. "What's the most firepower we can put on the target from one direction?"

Hyuga was already on top of it. "Here ma'am," The operator said, beating Aoba to answering that question. The holographic display changed to show the example- with lines drawn from batteries scattered across the southern hills and across the lake converging on the Angel's location. "Estimated explosive force on-target would be 1-2 Kilotons."

Yui shook her head. "That's not enough to penetrate the theoretical maximum of an A.T. Field."

Misato turned back to look at the display. "We need to do something, Doctor. If we don't-"

Maya announced, "Activity from the target!"  
The bottom of the diamond started to melt, dropping down into a single point that sharpened out right before it hit the pavement. Pushing into the ground, the earth moved aside as the crystalline drill started boring through the ground.

The entire bridge watched the display on the main monitor.

Misato, arms crossed, decided to state the obvious to get confirmation. "It's boring a hole?"

Hyuga nodded as he was one step ahead of the Captain. "Yes, the drill bit is passing through the upper layers of the city. Target is the exact center of the Geofront's upper hemisphere."

"The Zero Point." Yui uttered.

Misato took a step closer to the operators as she asked, "Estimate time to contact first armor belt?"

"Two minutes." Hyuga said.

Yui stepped up to Aoba's control station. "Once it hits the first layer we should have an estimate of how long we have before it penetrates our defenses."

"We need a solution fast." Misato said.

Yui turned her head. "Patience Captain, it hasn't taken the most direct route to us. There may be a reason that we can exploit."

Misato shifted uncomfortably but didn't respond to Yui. She continued staring at the main monitor, which now was showing the drill's progress through the topmost layer.

After those two minutes, Hyuga announced, "Contact with armor layer. Drill bit stopped!"

"Negative," Aoba replied, "Activity still registered on the outer layer."

Misato turned. "What's that outer layer composed of?"

"High tensile steel and classified ceramics." Yui replied, "It's designed to repel laser blasts and strong radiation sources. I'm having spectral-analysis take a look at the beam now."

Misato turned her head. "Can we deploy probes?"

"Excellent suggestion." Yui said, and pointed to spaces on Aoba's control panel where the probes should be deployed.

The hover drones were launched from points across the city and arced closer to the massive Angel. However, as soon as they were cleared from the buildings, the entire Angel structure started to shift again. It split across the equator, leaving behind the core and several floating spires, which rotated and fired beams of light out of them like a machine gun- blasting holes in every flying drone it could have line of sight to.

"Well," Misato grumbled, "Now we know what it responds to. Aoba, prime targets across the city. Start exploring the response range."

* * *

The hospital wing was several flights up, on the ground level of the Geofront. Shinji remained in his plugsuit just in case he had to be called back to the cages, even though his unit was under repair. "Yours is the best status right now, Shinji." Ritsuko had said.

Nodding, Shinji asked on the way to the hospital, "W-What about Rei?"

"Rei's machine is not ready for much yet," She said, "I still need to consult with your mother. This angel attack was unexpected."

When they arrived at the hospital and checked in, the two of them went to the emergency medical ward. All they can do was watch behind a pane of glass as Asuka was still being stabilized. Ritsuko asked for her status while Shinji was forced to watch.

Ritsuko had asked one of the nurses what was going on, before coming back to Shinji. "She's stable at least Shinji, but it's doubtful you'll be able to see her for a while. In the very least, we need to defeat the Angel. It's not going to matter for her if we don't."

Shinji was still staring at Asuka as the doctors were working over her. At least there weren't any obvious signs of an operation, merely getting her fluids and performing tests. He dipped his head, "I-I hope she gets some sleep..."

"She will." Ritsuko replied, "If her mother knows what's good for her, she'll let Asuka rest and recover." Side-glancing at Shinji she said, "You also need to think about yourself, too."

Shinji looked at her. "I-I don't feel tired..."

"Until we have a plan, you should take the time to rest." Ritsuko replied, "I can take you to my office if you need a short nap. I suggest you take it while you can."

Shinji looked back at the glass, at Asuka. He hoped she was all right...

"You should eat too." Ritsuko replied, "Since you skipped your dinner."

Now that Ritsuko had mentioned it, he was starting to get hungry. "O-Okay..."

* * *

A half-hour had passed since the Angel had started boring into the surface, and they were gathering more data by the minute. From the various tests they had established engagement range and approximate firepower of the Angel.

"This is," Yui was saying, "By far the strongest Angel we've encountered. At the rate it is drilling through the surface, it will have penetrated the geofront dome by 4pm tomorrow evening. We have that long to figure out how to defeat it."

Misato sighed. "It's going to be a long night... do you have any leads? I figure we'll need the largest, most powerful sniper weapon available. But nothing in our inventory has the firepower necessary."

"No." Yui replied, "I'll need to do some research." Turning to Aoba she said, "Continue gathering data, you're assigned on this task Mister Aoba."  
"Yes Ma'am!" Aoba replied, looking over the coffee cup he had in from earlier today.

Yui looked at Misato, but the Captain was focused on the view screen at the front of the room before she turned and left the bridge.

On high, Gendo Ikari watched the situation for a moment more before he stood. "I will make some calls."

Fuyutuski turned. "The old men are not going to like extortion."

"They don't have a choice." Gendo replied as he left.

Fuyutuski smirked, then turned back to the bridge situation and leaned on the railing. Indeed, it was going to be a long night.

* * *

After a quick call to the bridge to confirm the stand-down order, Shinji was able to change. He stood under the shower for a while to wash all of the day's sweat and grime off of him, reflecting over where he found himself.

What a day.

After changing into his clothes he followed Ritsuko up to her office, where she had a cot ready. "You can sleep here," She said by the door, "I'll be working late in another office. I can wake you in eight hours, or when we are ready to brief you."

"Ohkay..." Shinji sighed. Ever since leaving the showers he was getting more and more tired, and the cot was welcome. The lights in the main office were off, and it was easy for him to fall asleep after closing his eyes and facing away from the glass door.

Ritsuko watched him for a moment before closing her office door and locking it from the outside. She watched him another moment, as she was caught up in another memory. She could see, on her desk from where she looked, the two cats ornaments resting on the desk.

"Shut up." She said to them quietly before turning away.

* * *

Kyoko turned around, frowning at Ritsuko as she entered. "You're late."

Ritsuko made no comment as she entered the briefing room being used to begin planning the counter-attack. Already NERV staffers and assistants had set up shop, with laptops and data pads cluttering the extremity of the massive oblong octagonal table that dominated the center of the room. Projected on its face was a map of Tokyo-3, with the small facsimile of the Angel slowly spinning over downtown.

Hyuga was already speaking. "The drill bit has penetrated the 2nd layer. The ETA has been revised, estimated time to penetration is 7pm tomorrow evening."

As Ritsuko took her seat she checked the time. 12:15am. She looked around, there was no sign of Yui. Misato was standing at the head of the table and staring down across the table, likely processing everything she was hearing. A large cup of coffee was in front of her.

Hyuga continued, "We've analyzed the performance of the drill bit. The angel's drill keeps changing its molecular properties at random as it tries to penetrate the barrier. We've seen density, weight, and even atomic mass continually fluctuate when it hits an armor plate. This seems to be a randomized process- the Angel isn't adapting to each layer as much as it's trying different configurations at random to see what penetrates the layer. This is why we have revised our estimate."

Misato nodded. "That seems to fit with what the rest of this thing does. Any reason why it changes form when it does anything?"

Nobody had an answer. Ritsuko had a guess. "If I were to speculate," She said, "It might have something to do with the A.T. Field configurations. It may have to assume those shapes in order to customize its attack pattern. It moves too rapidly to take advantage of, however."

Misato shook her head. "No, we can. If this thing moves into a particular firing pattern it leaves the core exposed. You all saw it, right? The core is always at the center."

"Correct." Hyuga replied. Holographic plates materialized over the table to show freeze-frame instances of the Angel in motion. "In every instance we detected zero relative movement from the core. It is at the exact center of the entity."

A technician volunteered, "Can we get it to attack something and hit it from another direction?"

Another technician answered, "No. The A.T. Field is omnidirectional, isn't it?"

A third uttered to them, "Didn't you hear Doctor Ikari in the bridge? That won't work!"

Misato nodded. "We still need a way to push through. What did I hear about an experimental warhead sent over from the JDSF?"  
"Yes ma'am," Hyuga replied, "An hour ago the JDSF shipped over the Mark IV explosive warhead from Nagasaki. It was an experimental weapon developed in response to A.T. Fields encountered on the previous Angels."

Misato arched an eyebrow. "I take it that it wasn't successful?"

"No." Hyuga replied. On the screens, the scene played out. Three rail cars were necessary to bring the heavy cannon into place. Once it was locked down, an exotic warhead was loaded into the gun, aimed at the Angel, and fired from the distant hill.

"From this," Hyuga said, "We've been able to estimate the impact tolerance of the Angels' A.T. Field, estimating 2-12 tons of resistance force."

As they watched, the shell impacted against the A.T. Field. It visibly warped, throwing off bright orange octagonal waves from the impact area.

Hyuga went on, "We also discovered how far the Angel will retaliate."

The angel in the screen folded like an origami construction. Seconds later, an aperture that looked like a paper fortune-teller was surrounding a flashbulb from the core as it projected a beam. Not only did it eliminate the mortar, but the entire hillside was razed in the resulting blast.

Mutters echoed around the table.

Aoba asked, "How can we get an Evangelion close enough to that thing?"

"We probably can't." Another technician offered.

Ritsuko was staring at the data that had been collected. "Even if they could get close, the strength of this A.T. Field may not be possible to eliminate."

Misato crossed her arms. "If we can't erode it, how do we punch through it?"

Silence around the table as technicians looked at one another. Ritsuko stared with no answer.

"Well?" Misato asked to the empty room with the tone of an impatient teacher to passive students.

Ritsuko answered, "Nobody has actually ever tested trying to defeat an active A.T. Field. Until the Angels arrived, defeating an A.T. field with raw power was largely theoretical."

"Is it possible or not?" Misato asked.

Ritsuko responded, "An A.T. Field is not a shield from Star Trek that has integrity. It's a metaphysical barrier beyond the conventional understanding of science. We can't even begin to test them without specific equipment that, as yet, does not exist."

Misato waved a hand to dismiss the excuse. "What are MAGI's conclusions?"

Hyuga answered her. "MAGI has no conclusion yet with the current variables."

Misato nodded, then asked, "What happened to the Evangelion's A.T. Fields? Why couldn't they neutralize the beam?"

Hyuga tapped on his tablet. The screen changed to slow so-motion captures of the beam attacking the Elevator building housing Evangelion 02. As they watched, the Eva's A.T. Field materialized, but...

"That's not neutralization," Misato said, "That's-"

"High energy penetration." Yui Ikari said as she entered the room, carrying several large rolls of paper under her arm. She made her way to the table saying, "Weapons of this caliber have been banned from use by the antarctic treaty. However, this is not to say weapons of this function do not exist beyond our current scope."

She pulled one roll of paper from under her arm, dropped the rest on the table, and flung out the plans on the table. The sheet passed through the holographic projection of the city, which was instantly replaced by a rendered model of the 3D plans.

"What is this?" Misato asked.

Yui replied, "A prototype ground-emplacement anti-satellite directed energy weapon- the origins of our current positron technology. Though the weapon his highly illegal, the JDSF never scrapped the prototype, which is currently in storage."

Ritsuko's eyes danced over the weapons specifications that were hovering in the air beside the weapon. "The power requirements for this are staggering! This is beyond the output capacity of all five of our power plants. Where do you intend to get the energy?"

Yui nodded. "That is being taken care of as we speak. What we need to do is collect this weapon and assemble it in less than nineteen hours, or we're all dead."

Ritsuko was wondering if this weapon was intended to strike _the moon_ instead of orbital satellites. She glanced at Misato, who was looking like a kid in a candy store.


	6. Chapter 6: Javelin

**VI. JAVELIN**

NERV was far from the only repository of secrets buried within the Earth. According to the JDSF, this location was still classified. A massive blue tactical jet had been parked in front of the double doors that guarded the facility though- expediency demanded that loading operations were as quick as possible.

Misato downed her fourth cup of coffee since the meeting. She knew she would have to catch sleep at some point or burn herself out, but she needed to be on point for this. She could turn over construction of the weapon and the firing platform to others; but she needed to assess the weapon herself in order to make sure this was going to work.

Yui was also here to inspect the weapon.

As they waited by the doors in the cold dark-morning air, Misato decided to make conversation. "It's a miracle Commander Ikari managed to acquire the entire nation's power grid. I wonder what strings he had to pull?"  
"We may never know the favors he, or NERV, have on the local government." Yui replied, "Besides, when all life as we know it is at stake, it's difficult to say no when your own existence is on the line."

Misato looked back at the doors. "I wish we could use that line with the budget committee. I'd like a couple more Evangelions to fight this war with."

"We gave you unit 00 back," Yui said, then added lightly, "You aren't happy with that?"

"Unit 00 is a cranky prototype." Misato said, "Would you ride a horse if you knew it tried to kill you last week?"

"It is what we have," Yui replied, "And it will serve. Doctor Akagi and myself will attest to that."

"I'd rather have unit 02." Misato said, "Or steal 03 and 04 from the Americans."

"Be careful what you wish for, commander." Yui replied.

Misato's response was interrupted by the inner doors parting. Long cargo boxes were being hauled out by automatic trucks, which were advancing now towards the space plane NERV was using.

Misato read the english characters on the side of the box. Postitron-Helix Amplification of Stimulated Anergy and Radiation (Prototype). When the full acronym was spelled out on the side of the box, she looked at Yui. "You can't be serious."

Yui was smiling lightly. "Many great advancements take their inspiration from fiction, Misato. The cellular phones you are using now come from the same source of inspiration."

A JDSF lieutenant was running up, saluted, and said, "Doctor Ikari, we're ready to sign the weapon over to you. Do you have the authorization papers?"

Yui presented them.

"V-Very well." The Lieutenant said, taking them and putting them on his own clipboard to sign. He put them under a different set of papers and passed them to Yui. Turning to Misato he said, "This cache is the only existing prototype of the Postitron-Helix Amplication of Stimulated Energy and-"

"You can call it a PHASER." Yui replied as she signed the paperwork, "No need to be shy."

Misato grunted.

"Y-yes... the PHASER. It is of course disassembled, and I do not need to remind you the weapon was never fired or brought up to full power..."

"Wait," Misato said, turning to Yui while she handed back the paperwork, "Built, but never fired? Or charged? I thought this thing had been tested!"

"It was!" The lieutenant said, then under his breath, "Tested to the point of construction..."

He was quick to take the papers, salute, then run from the withering glare of Misato. The Captain turned her gaze on Yui. "So we have a weapon that might not even fire?"

Yui waved to the operator of the trucks, then waved to the blue space plane they were using. She turned back to Misato. "You were so optimistic about this plan, Captain."

'That was BEFORE I learned that the PHASER was never FIRED!" Misato barked.

Yui, still smiling, turned away from Misato and started walking to the plane. "It isn't as if we have any choice, is it?"

* * *

Shinji stirred. He felt the cot creaking beneath him and remembered he wasn't in his own bed. He rolled and looked up, eyes peeking open. Light was on in the room, coming from a source somewhere else in the room, but the main lights weren't on.

He closed his eyes again. "Another unfamiliar ceiling…"  
"Shinji?"

Sucking in a breath he woke himself up. "Uhn?"

Ritsuko had returned to her office. Only a single desk lamp was on to illuminate her papers, along with her computer screens- projected all in red to preserve her night vision.

Shinji sat up and rubbed his eyes in the dark room. "What time is it?"

"It's six in the morning." She replied. She spun in her chair to face him. "I'm sorry I woke you, I needed to access my computer here."

"I-It's ok." Shinji replied, rubbing his face, then yawning loudly. He shifted to sit on the side of the cot. He sat for a moment to think-

-Then remembered last night.

"W-What's happening?" Shinji asked, "W-With... the Angel."

Ritsuko raised her face a degree in recognition of his current presence on the matter. "Captan Katsuragi has a plan to defeat it now. We're calling it Operation Yashima."

"What am I supposed to do?"

Ritsuko tilted her head. "Are you sure you don't want to try getting more sleep?"

Shinji rubbed his face again. "I don't know... I'm a little tired, but I don't think I'll be able to sleep."

"Fair." Ritsuko replied, "We have a weapon. It is powerful enough to punch through the Angel's A.T. Field and destroy it, if we can hit the Angel's weak spot. One of you will be firing the weapon, the other will be on defense and support."

Shinji nodded, imagining an enormous gun mounted over the shoulder of his robot that he had to fire. "Will I be shooting the weapon?"

"We don't know yet," Ritsuko said, "But, likely. Your Evangelion is in the best condition to do this, and you're the healthiest pilot available."

Shinji blinked and his head whirled. "Asuka-!"

"Last I heard she's fine." Ritsuko replied, "I don't know if the hospital is admitting visitors at this hour, but we can try to visit her again if you wish."

Shinji stood, but then thought about it and looked down. "W-Would it be too weird?"

"I don't think so." Ritsuko replied, turning back to her computer to finish up her tasks and put the computer to sleep. "It's natural for you to be concerned. I imagine you can't find your own way back however, so I'll take you."

Shinji looked at Ritsuko as she stood, but then he looked away. "I-I don't want to take you away from your work..."

"Nonsense." Ritsuko replied, "I needed to stretch my legs anyway. Nothing I do will speed the repairs of your Evangelion or the fitting of Evangelion 00."

Shinji's mind snapped to seeing Rei with His Father on the gantry. "R-Rei will be fighting?"

"Evangelion 02 is in no condition now for battle." Ritsuko replied once they were outside the office. She locked it up again. "It's faster to get Evangelion 00 operational than trying to stabilize and re-activate unit 02. Besides, didn't you want Asuka to get some rest?"

Shinji nodded to himself. In the fervor of everything, it seemed the events of yesterday and before felt so far away.

"Come." Ritsuko said, "This way."

* * *

Misato tried to catch some sleep on the flight back to Tokyo-3, but of course, it wouldn't come. With nothing better to do she opened up a laptop to check on all phases of the plan. She filtered down the report Emails that were forwarded to her.

The Japanese Government was just now starting to lay power trunks- appropriating assets from Project Blue to do so. Misato snorted softly at that- the massive pretentious Earth Reclamation Effort was being swept aside in order to continue the Angel War. From the progress reports though, it seemed their productivity could not be understated.

The firing platform was also being constructed at rapid pace, this time by Tokyo-03's construction and renovation crew. This was the same team that patched the city together in record time after the last two Angel attacks, and now they were building a massive platform big enough to support an Evangelion and its firing equipment. Also leading up to the site was a new railway complex connected to Tokyo-03's internal rail system. Once all was ready, the weapon would be brought up to the platform from there.

Afterwards, Misato imagined, it would become a tourist destination since it had a nice overview of Lake Ashi from the south.

The assembly teams were prepared and ready at Tokyo-03. Hyuga and Yoizuki were working around the clock to get the teams assembled and doing all the preparation work to assemble the weapon in record time.

Team C, which was taking up the Evangelion 02 reconstruction team, was busy on another tool the Evangelions would be using in the operation.

Misato nodded at all these surrounding aspects before her attention shifted to the Evangelions. Eva 02 was out of the question- the damage to the shoulder meant Asuka wouldn't be able to fire the weapon accurately- if the shoulder could be repaired in time at all. The complete restoration timetable would be too long. By the time Evangelion 02 would be ready from an all-nighter, the Angel would be two thirds of the way through the entire GeoFront.

That left Unit 01 and Unit 00.

Unit 01 was in the best shape with minor damage. Mercifully by putting it on decoy duty it was the least damaged when the Angel saw through their ruse. The armor plating had already been fixed, it could sortie any moment the pilot was ready.

Unit 00 had been cleared from it's re-start procedures and was otherwise ready for combat. It lacked many of the improvements developed into Unit 01 and Unit 02, but at least it could hold stuff and shoot weapons.

That left pilots.

Misato refreshed herself on the pilot's profiles, a little surprised to learn what had occurred in the past week while she was away. Rei's synch scores from the test yesterday night were remarkably _better_ than in 01, where she was put for the first battle against the Angels. At the face of it, it seemed natural to put her back in Unit 00. No question.

Asuka was a mess.

Misato looked through the amended files attached to Asuka's profile and the synchronization scores and sighed. With this paperwork she could see the hard data reflecting the war between the medical and technical departments. Asuka's scores seemed reasonable from the technical side, but the medical performance reports were full of glowing praise. In spite of the coloring the results couldn't be dismissed- Asuka's scores were improving. But the latest report- her medical condition- disqualified her from going on sortie for this battle. There was no data with trying to get her to synchronize with the other Evangelion units, and there were too many knows to let her try this time. She was being benched- it would hurt, but Misato figured she could use the rest.

That left Ikari's boy.

Misato took a moment to look over Shinji's profile. She had wondered if the Ikaris had children, but she always figured Rei was their daughter. This was a rare insight into her commanding officers- they _had_ a natural son. Where had he been all this time?  
Misato leaned away from her seat to look down the aisle of chairs. Yui Ikari was still up, tapping away on her computer.

Leaning back into her seat she stared at the boy's image. Why no mention of him until this past week? Was he a delinquent, or something? Had they sent him away to protect him? No... otherwise, why bring him here?

His Synchronization scores were astounding from the get go, and only improving over the past few days. Skill aside he was the healthiest of the lot presently, and assigned to the Evangelion in the best condition. He would be the one to fire the gun.

Misato composed an email and fired it off. She browsed a few more status updates before a video phone request from Hyuga came in. She pulled a headset out of her bag and accepted the call.

"Captain," Hyuga's small image said into her ears, "We've inspected the specifications for... for the PHASER," Even _He_ was having problems with the acronym. "Doctor Akagi's presumptions were correct, it's going to require a massive amounts of power to fire. There's no way around using the nation's power grid."

"I figured." Misato replied, "What else?"

"It's the power requirements specifically." Hyuga replied, "The weapon was designed with a certain frequency that's incompatible with the nation's power grid. We're constructing customized transformers now to present the energy necessary in a currency that the weapon can accept. We also figured we could pre-prime the weapon here with a capacitor, cutting down charge time to several seconds. We're having to cannibalize several Evangelion battery packs, however."

"That's fine, we'll replace them later." Misato said. _Well done, Hyuga_. "Keep making Miracles Hyuga."

"Working to bend the laws of physics, aye ma'am." Hyuga replied with a salute and closed the channel.

* * *

Shinji was pleased to hear Asuka had been moved from the intensive care area to another recovery room. He was allowed to visit her! Entering her room, he discovered her already sitting up and staring at a number of books that were open across her bed. A laptop was open on her lap.

His smile faded as he beheld the sight... Asuka's studies were catching up with her. She haddn't gotten the rest she needed after all. She was working even when Shinji came in.

"I'm a little busy Shinji," Asuka said, "Give me a few minutes."

Shinji hesitated, not having the heart to tell her his visitation was limited. Of course, that was on the thought that she was supposed to be _resting_. The moments stretched on, to the point where Shinji glanced at the clock. He had been here five minutes.

"S-So," Shinji said, "You're really okay?"

"Yes." Asuka replied without looking up, then added in a lower tone, "But they tell me I'm not ready for action."

Shinji looked at the ground. "y-Your Eva has a hole in it."

Asuka didn't answer for a moment as she typed. Then she stopped. "How big?"

"I-I don't know..." Shinij replied, "b-But... I heard that... another two seconds-"

"And I'd be dead." Asuka completed for him.

Shinji said nothing.

"Well," Asuka said as she resumed typing, "At least I wouldn't have a paper to worry about if I did." Shinji fidgeted. "What?" Asuka demanded, staring at him now.

"I-I don't like to hear you joke about that." Shinji replied, staring down.

Asuka had to put down the welt of emotion that bubbled up in her. She had to focus. Sucking in a breath she resumed her work.

Shinji didn't see that however, and just saw her impassively working on her essay. He looked down. "T-They say we have a plan to kill the thing, N-now."

"We should," Asuka replied, "If Misato wants to keep her job. I take it I'm not part of the plan?"

"Y-Your hurt!" Shinji replied, "You shouldn't be a part of the plan!"

"That doesn't matter if I'm needed." Asuka replied. She had paused typing.

Shinji shook his head and looked away. "I haven't heard anything. All I k-know is that I-I'm... firing the gun."

"Sounds easy. Congratulations." Asuka replied.

The caustic remark bit Shinji had he looked up at her. She had resumed typing, but he overlooked that she was typing slowly. On her screen, sentences were being formed and then immediately erased. She couldn't focus...

But she had to appear focused. This needed to be done, or she was not allowed to rest.

Shinji shook his head. Where was the Asuka he had reached out to? She had clammed up again... and he knew she was hurting. He had seen it. Maybe... maybe the best thing was to go away, after all.

"I-I'm sorry..." he said and started to stand.

Shinji walked to the door. As he walked, Asuka tried again and again to write. It wasn't coming to her, because now the guilt was rising inside of her stomach over the fact that she was pushing an innocent away. After he had tried to help her.

Shinji reached for the door. "Shinji!"

Shinji turned his head a degree without looking at her. "I-I can stop bothering you-"

"Look at me."

His eyes met with hers.

She was staring at him with her tired eyes. He could see then in her look that same, vulnerable surprise he had seen when her door had opened to him the other day.

"Thank you... for visiting." Her voice said, coming out shakier than she wanted.

But this put a small smile on his face. He straightened a little more and left the room pleased.

Asuka saw him go, and with it a half-heated glow was resting around her heart. He cared... in spite of everything, he cared.

_You should have told him to stop bothering you_.

Even after the door closed, her mental picture of her mother was in her mind. The Third Child was a distraction, she needed to focus. She needed to be perfect.

A book fell off the bed from her shifting her leg.

Anger flashed in Asuka's eyes and in one motion she swung to fling everything else off the bed except the laptop. She picked up stray books and also threw them off, grunting as she stared at the world from underneath her contorted eyebrows. If she had the energy, she'd rip the pages out...

...of these very expensive textbooks.

She dropped the one she had been holding, ready to destroy the pages. Her next thought was a simulation of what her mother would tell her if she came in and saw this...

She sunk into the bed and pulled the covers up and over her as she tried to form an excuse. She was tired... that was it. She was too tired and there was a bit of pain. She couldn't do anything for it except to push the things off the bed. Could mama help her put the books back so she could study?

She wouldn't mention Shinji's visit. She had to do the right things.

Finally she fell asleep, inviting the nightmares to visit.

* * *

Shinji was still not tired.

Ritsuko, taking him further into the base, said, "You may want to catch some more sleep before long, you need to be rested and ready for the rest of this afternoon."

The little LED clock in the elevator, headed down, read 7:14.

"No," Shinji said, balling his fists, "I-I think I can stay awake. W-What do you want me to do?"

Ritsuko was impressed. On her first meeting with Shinji, she wouldn't have expected to hear such strength from him. Perhaps Asuka did something for his motivation? "All right Shinji, if you're up to it we can start training you on how to use the weapon. While we don't have the exact simulation parameters, we can get you started on how to understand how it works and start practicing."

"R-Really?" Shinji asked, "B-But I thought you needed to as-assemble the gun?"

Ritsuko smiled. "We wouldn't let you go into the field without preparing you, Shinji. Put a little more faith in us than that."

Shinji blinked. It was reassuring, actually.

"We have simulators that we can put you into to get the practice." Ritsuko said, "It will take a while to warm up. Why don't you change into your plugsuit."

"Okay." Shinji nodded as he tried to remember how to get to the changing rooms from the elevator they were in.

"Also, here." Ritsuko said, producing some yen from her pocket, "Get yourself something to eat. You've been going non-stop since yesterday, get some food in you."

Shinji, clutching the yen, stared at it for a moment before looking up at her. "What about you?"

"I'll manage." Ritsuko replied, "This isn't the first all nighter I've pulled. When you're ready, meet me at the main office of the cages, and I'll take you to where you need to go."

"O-Okay." Shinji replied as he closed his fist around the yen.

* * *

The spaceplane's landing ground was behind a hill from Tokyo-3. Everyone was relatively sure that this was out of range from the Angel, but it was still reassuring to have a mountain blocking it from view.

Massive doors had opened in the hillside next to the airbase where the containers were being driven through. A short trip down the elevator and they were brought to one of the largest indoor staging areas anywhere in Japan. This was the place Evangelion weaponry was maintained, fabricated, and disassembled.

The work crews were already fabricating new components when the rifle itself came in. Team A began unpacking the equipment as Team B was finishing up the secondary components.

The efficiency of the team never ceased to amaze Misato.

Hyuga yawned in the middle of giving his report before he went on, "The capacitor trains are nearly completed. The main battery refit is also completed, they are on their way to the firing platform at Daikanzan. Inspection of the weapon and assembly begins now."

"Good." Misato said, "And what about the second part?"

As they were speaking a trio of utility trucks was driving on to the elevator to return to the surface. Hyuga pointed at them. "They're headed up now to disassemble the space plane."

Misato blinked. "Wait, so... they're just going to cut it in half?"

Hyuga nodded. "We removed the arm brace from a Type 3 shield and we'll mount it to the superstructure. In theory, the electromagnetic coating on the heat shield will be enough to withstand the Angel's blast for approximately three seconds."

Misato stared steadily for a moment before she said, "This is Yui's idea, isn't it?"

Hyuga shrugged. "You did ask for a defensive option in case the Angel counter-attacked."

Misato sighed and rubbed her face. "I really hope our next operation has a little more forethought put into it."

Hyuga replied, "At least we got a few hours out of it. All things considered we estimate completion of all parts about an hour before the Angel is set to penetrate the last barrier."

"That's still cutting it close." Misato uttered.

* * *

Shinji was too slow to pull the trigger. The entry plug's windows went red, and before him a window read SIMULATION OVER.

Shinji sighed and leaned back in the couch. Maya spoke over the comm, "Sorry Shinji. Do you want to try again or do you need a break?"

"N-No," Shinji replied, re-grasping the handles, "I-I can keep going."

"All right..." Maya replied with a little hesitance. The simulation re-started, with Shinji standing next to the grounded weapon. Here in the simulation it took the appearance of a pair of conjoined spheres, connected with a small cylinder and a barrel jutting out of the leading sphere.

Maya had walked him through the gist of it. This was a bi-phase weapon, combining matter and antimatter into a massive energy beam that would fire coherent energy on the target. In fewer words, he would be firing naked energy from the gun towards the target, bathing it in the converted energy of Japan.

"Remember Shinji," Maya was saying as he knelt beside the simulated gun, "The Angel will react to built up power sources. Once it detects the weapon charging it will prepare to counter-attack. You'll need to hit the apex of the weapons' charge, firing at maximum power at the first chance you get. We estimate you'll be able to get the first shot off, so do your best to get there before it does!"

Shinji nodded. He was watching the weapon charge meter in his HUD. The zoom scope, detached from the back of the seat behind him, was resting in front of his eyes, allowing him to focus on a specific target.

The meter line was rising higher.

Shinji glanced at the target- the Angel was already unfolding in an origami pattern. He had the crosshairs lined up-

The line hit red.

Shinji hit the trigger as soon as he could.

The simulation was an interesting representation of what would happen. The beam was a column of solid white, surrounded by a black haze. He wondered what it would look like in real life.

The Red screens appeared again.

"W-What?"  
"Sorry Shinji." Maya replied. A screen opened up in front of Shinji showing the cross-section of the Angel. A red line was drawn, going just underneath the Angel's body and curving upward as it travelled left. "You need to hit the exact center of the target. This is the Angel's core, which we believed is their concentrated brain and central nervous system. Destroying or damaging this means the Angel will be defeated and lose cohesion. But you need to hit it!"

Shinji nodded, "Ok... ok... Just give me a minute and I can try again."

"Are you sure you don't want to take a break?" Maya asked.

"I'm sure, stop bothering me about it!"

"...okay." Maya replied, hurt.

Shinji grunted as he caught himself. "No.. Maya, I'm sorry. I'm just getting tired I guess. I don't want to take a break because it takes a while to get in and get out of this thing."

Maya paused on the other end before she said, "It's ok... thank you for apologizing. Don't worry about the time involved getting out, if you need that break, take it. You won't get the opportunity later."

"All right I'll come out." Shinji said.

Twenty minutes later, as Shinji was getting the suit back on from using the restroom, it struck him how _normal_ it was to have this on, now. He haddn't thought much of it when he used the restroom- his mind was on other things. But as the suit closed around him again it struck him that this wasn't a usual garment- why wasn't he weirded out by it?

Evangelions... LCL... plugsuit... PHASER... fantastic things that transcended ordinary life. He shouldn't have accepted these things, yet, here he was.

Ritusko was right... he had accepted all of this without second thought.

He emerged from the restrooms to enter the common dining area that Maya brought him to on this level. A few other NERV employees turned their heads as they noticed him- some ducking down and talking amongst themselves. The Eva pilot! Shinji couldn't blame them, he supposed, since there were only three of them on the entire base. "Shinji!" Someone called.

It was Maya. With her was a man sitting across from her. As Shinji approached, Maya pointed to one of the far walls, "You can get food from the dispensers over there. Be careful not to touch them with your plugsuit- did you shower in the suit like I told you to?"

"Yeah, I did." Shinji replied. It was one of the first things he did when he got in there. On the way to this place, Maya was adamant to tell him _not_ to ingest LCL if he could help it.

The man sitting across from Maya cocked an eyebrow. "Shinji Ikari?"

Shinji hesitated. "Y-Yes?"

The man stood and bowed to Shinji. "Kaji Ryoji. I've heard a lot about you."

Shinji hesitated, then returned the gesture. "R-Really?"

Kaji nodded. "I never knew the Ikaris had a son. It's a pleasure to finally make your acquaintance."

Maya guessed at Shinji's confusion and elaborated, "Kaji is a special inspector for NERV."

"Oh." Shinji replied.

Kaji glanced at the far wall with the food dispensers and said, "Grab your grub, we'll talk when you get back."

Shinji did as he was told, walking across the cafeteria to the far wall. There, he found futuristic DIAL-A-MEAL food dispensers. Confused, he looked at the options before pressing one of the oversized buttons. A few moments later he returned to Maya's table with a plate of noddles and rice.

Kaji looked over Shinji's meal. "Looks delicious."

Shinji groaned, "I just hope it's better than the snack bars I had before training..."

Kaji nodded at Shinji. "You have higher standards of food?"

"I like home cooked meals a lot better." Shinji replied and poked at his meal with the chopsticks before he tried some of it.

"Maya," Kaji said, "I don't think I've ever asked you what brought you here. You were intern until about a year ago, what made you stay?"

Shinji raised his head to listen.

"W-Well," Maya replied, "After the second impact I finished my degrees at Tokyo University in Engineering and... kinda sat for a while. I tried to find work but with everything..." She looked distant for a moment before going on, "Eventually I managed to find a place, did some internships across Japan. I applied to Tokyo-3 two years ago, completed my internship, and now I'm on the command staff under a mentorship from Doctor Akagi."

"But why here?" Kaji replied, "Japan University could use your talents. I looked at your profile, I know you're smart."

Maya, smiling, glanced at Shinji, "You interrupted us when I was being interviewed by Mr. Kaji."

When Shinji looked at Kaji, Kaji replied, "I'm collecting interviews for a book."

"You mean you're spying for your mistress," Maya replied, "trying to take information back to her for evaluations." She poked at her food before saying, "I believe in Science. After the second impact, I kept wondering if there would be any kind of future for mankind. Now, here we are, in the most sophisticated city on the planet, actively working to prevent out annihilation. There's no other place I would rather be, honestly."

"Faith keeps you here?" Kaji asked.

Maya nodded. "I suppose it does, yes."

Kaji nodded. "A wonderful sentiment." He glanced at Shinji. "What about you, Mr. Ikari? Why are you here?"

Shinji smiled down at his food. "My parents made me come."

"But why do you stay?"

Shinji found that question harder to answer. He laid down his chopsticks and stared into space for a moment. "I... I guess..." He said...

_I want to hear from my parents that they love me._

He shook his head as he looked at the plate again. "T-There's people I want to protect here. I-I... I can't just leave them."

"That's a commendable effort." Kaji replied, "Not many people have that."

"That's why we like Shinji." Maya replied, also looking at him.

Shinji beamed in the appreciation.

Maya turned to Kaji. "He's also a lot easier to talk to than Rei or Asuka."

* * *

Noon was the biggest landmark of the entire plan. They had seven hours left before the Angel would penetrate the Geofront, and it would all be over.

The firing platform was done. Personnel were already staging around it, and the rail-lines were laid leading up to the platform, where the first of the supplies were delivered. The power trunk was expected to arrive in two hours, and be ready for the hookups. Two generators were being completed on-site.

In the assembly bay, the massive PHASER was coming together. Ritsuko Akagi, coming up from the Cages where she oversaw Evangelion 00's refit, was now catching up on the technical aspects specific to Operation Yashima.

Hyuga was briefing her on the latest updates. "The Barrel focus arrays were found to be cracked and degraded from storage. We've had to construct spares... mostly from cannibalizing the Type 20 positron rifles we have in storage."

Ritsuko nodded. "I saw something about a materials issue?"

Hyuga's shoulders slumped. "Until now corbomite was an engineering fantasy we read about in college magazines. You can imagine everyone's surprise when it actually exists. Fortunately it came with documentation, so we can work around it. That's after a half hour of wondering how to work with the stuff before someone found a manual in the paperwork you sent over."

Ritsuko nodded, calculating. Her irises shrank as she realized the ramifications of this. "So then-"

"Yes," Hyuga said, "We all did the same calculations. The weapon will produce 50 megatons of destructive force when its operating at full power. As it is, we're going to have to be careful the beam doesn't go _through_ the Angel and wipe out the maraduke peak."

"We'll see about that." Ritsuko replied, "What's your estimated time to completion?"

"Two hours." Hyuga replied, "Testing will commence after that, then troubleshooting, then delivery. Five...five thirty delivery time."

Ritusko nodded. "Firing time is at 6:45. Commendable that you'll be early."

"We're being generous for a weapon that's never been fired before." Hyuga replied.

* * *

The hours ticked by as both Angel and NERV raced the clock.

For Shinji, it was practice, practice, practice. By the time he emerged from the simulator plugs at 2pm he was beat... but optimistic. He had practiced enough times over the day that what he was about to do... felt... routine.

As he left the plug and started down the stairs to meet Maya at the office, he was flexing his fist. He was ready, more ready for this than anything else he had faced in his life. It was an empowering feeling... one he haddn't experienced often.

He liked it.

But he also knew the only reason he got here was because of that practice. He closed his eyes... the world, he knew, didn't give him time to prep to be this prepared. Just look at his arrival here.

Maya was waiting for him at the bottom of the stairs from the test plugs. "You've done great Shinji!"

"T-Thank you." Shinji replied with a nod.

Maya glanced at the clipboard she had in her hands before she said, "Okay... before we head to the site, you need a physical. It's something quick, and it can also double as your first-time physical since we didn't do that when you arrived."

Shinji nodded. A physical... "S-So we'll be by the hospital?"

"Yes."

"C-Can I visit Asuka?" Shinji asked.

Maya looked at her clipboard again. "Uh... I don't think there will be time Shinji. Once you're done at the medical wing you're needed on the firing platform as soon as possible. Your Evangelion will be heading over there shortly before you do."

"O-Oh..." Shinji replied.

Silently he followed

* * *

Shinji came into a different entrance from the last time he came to visit Asuka. There was a large waiting room here, filled with precisely one occupant.

It was Rei.

She was dressed in her all-white plugsuit, sitting alone in a single seat.

The girl turned her head when Shinji and Maya entered the room. She locked eyes with Shinji as the Third Child crossed the room with his attendant.

She had no expression on her face.

Shinji looked away once, but then cast a glance back to see if she was still staring. She was. He dropped his gaze to where he was walking and stood beside Maya as she checked him in. Immediately he was admitted.

"I'll be here waiting Shinji," Maya told him, "You, Rei, and I will go to the platform together."

Shinji cast a glance at Rei before he swallowed, nodded, and followed the nurse into the examination room. Once there, he was instructed to take off the plugsuit and dress in a hospital gown.

Once he did these things he sat on the jacked-up medical bed, sitting quietly with his thoughts. He clenched his fist again as he tried to re-grasp the feeling of preparedness... of power. The will to succeed. He could do this.

After flexing his fist and putting him in the right frame of mind he rested his balled hands on his knees and stared into space. "I wonder how Asuka's doing..." he mused.

Suddenly the door opened. It was Kyoko Zeppelin. "Good." She said, "You've changed."

"Yes." Shinji replied.

After the doctor closed the door the medical procedure began. For the most part it was routine, beginning with taking his temperature and blood pressure. By the time Kyoko commanded him to be ready for blood sample extraction he had gathered enough will to ask, "Is Asuka okay?"

"The second child is not your concern." Kyoko replied.

Shinji blinked. She was technically right, Asuka wasn't strictly his responsibility... but he wanted to know, still, if she was feeling any better. But he also remembered her lying on his behalf yesterday...

Shinji's pulse jumped a little. Kyoko turned her head. "Third, stop daydreaming."

"Y-Yes ma'am." Shinji replied and tried to relax again, taking a deep breath and letting it out as he cleared his mind.

The tests continued. Reflexes, reactions, and breath tests. It seemed more thorough of an examination than Shinji was used to. Out of boredom, as she was typing on the computer, he glanced at the chart she had written.

Something was wrong. He compared his current pulse to what was being written down... it wasn't correct. Shinji blinked and looked at Kyoko. Was she sabotaging his medical test profile?

His pulse started to beep again and he shook his head and closed his eyes before Kyoko could admonish him again, trying to keep his pulse under control.

"Third," Kyoko said, "If you cannot keep your impulses under control you should be disqualified from this assignment."

Shinji took a breath again, trying to relax.

"Did you hear me, Third?"

"Yes." Shinji replied as he eased it out. He looked at her as he tried to keep his panicked nerves under control. "But I'm needed to pilot the Eva. Asuka's hurt."

Shinji's breath caught in his throat when Kyoko stared at him. "The Second child is capable of anything." Kyoko replied, "Even injured, her skill surpasses yours."

Shinji gulped, but tightened his fists. "M-Maybe..." Shinji replied, "But she can't pilot if her Evangelion is damaged."

Kyoko's head spun back to the computer. "She can be made to pilot Unit 01. After all, the First has done it." She finished her work, shut down the computer, and stood suddenly. "You're free to go. Get your plugsuit back on and report to Ibuki."

"Y-Yes ma'am." Shinji replied.

Kyoko left the door ajar in her departure.

Shinji was a bit numb as he stood up and walked to the door to close it. Turning back around to look at where his plugsuit lie his eyes passed over the desk... where Kyoko had been writing her notes.

He closed his fists again.

* * *

When Shinji left the hospital area Maya had been in the waiting room, sitting beside Rei. "Ready to go?" She had asked, standing. Rei stood with her.

Shinji was too preoccupied with what had happened to say anything other than utter an acknowledgment. He was too consumed with what he saw to notice that Rei was following them too.

Finally once they were in the elevator- away from Kyoko's domain- Shinji decided to speak. "M-Maya..."

"Hmm? Yes Shinji?" Maya asked.

Shinji closed his fists again. "Doctor Zeppelin falsified my records."

"W-What?" Maya asked, "Are you sure?"

"I-I think so." Shinji replied, "I-I don't think she recorded the right information."

Maya turned away. "Maybe you're mistaken, Shinji."

"I-I think I want to tell Doctor Akagi anyway." Shinji replied.

Maya looked at him, then said, "When we get to the station, there's a phone line you can use to reach her. Cell phone reception isn't good down here."

* * *

They arrived before long at the rail station. A passenger car was being loaded with NERV supplies and personnel- Shinji guessed this was the supply train headed for the firing platform.

Rei was still with them.

The pilots and Maya boarded the train without saying anything. The car they boarded, an executive red-painted one, was nearly empty. Only two other technicians were present, sitting on the opposite end of the train.

After sitting and dropping her bag Maya grabbed her phone. She examined it for a second before getting up. "Well, now it's my turn to call Doctor Akagi. I'll be right back." She said and stood up to walk to the space between the cars, where Shinji saw a red telephone on a hook. Shinji figured it must be for classified conversations... he wondered if it had something to do about Doctor Zepplin... He looked at Rei.

The girl was posed much in the same way she was in class- staring out the window. She was observing the unloading efforts on the other end of the platform.

Shinji's fists balled again as he recalled seeing her in the test chamber last night... his father was smiling. Shinji's hands flexed again, and he squared his shoulders.

Confidence...

"A-Ayanami," Shinji said.

She did not look at him.

"Ayanami!"  
Rei turned to face him with that impassive stare.

Shinji swallowed and tried to find the words under her stare. "Y-You saw my father. Y-Yesterday, before you b-boarded the Eva."

"Yes." Rei replied, still staring at him.

Shinji swallowed. In his heart, he grasped the power that he felt by being prepared for This Moment. He will try to be brave. "Wh-What was it you were t-talking about?"

Rei looked away. "It pertained to classified portions of the activation test."

That wasn't the dramatic response Shinji was expecting. But then, he couldn't know what he expected. Looking away he uttered, "I saw father was smiling at you... he never smiled at me..."

"I do not know why the commander had that reaction." Rei replied.

Shinji blinked.

He leaned up and stared at Rei, though she wasn't paying attention to him.

A weight just flew off his chest. _Even Rei didn't know_? "You don't know?"

"No." Rei replied, "I cannot account for his emotion during that moment. My communication was routine."

Shinji blinked and felt himself relax with relief. Whatever it was, _Rei_ wasn't doing it.

His fists tightened again as another thought hit him. Even if Rei wasn't responsible... _something_ about her made Shinji's father value her. Why?

He considered Rei again in this light and then felt a wave of pity wash over him. It was only days ago that Suzuhara hit her, sending her to the pavement. All for being an Evangelion pilot who made a mistake.

With that thought Shinji realized two things.

The first was that Rei couldn't be held accountable for how others felt about her- not Shinji, not his Father. That perception of value was intrinsic to the beholder. It would do no good to act out of jealousy for something Rei was not actively doing.

The other was that, just as Shinji and his Father had different perceptions of Rei, perhaps others had different perceptions of him. His own parents may hate him... but... others were seeing him as friends. Indeed, he could already bask in the friendship of others. Just as he had.

Maya returned. "I just got off the phone with Doctor Akagi," Maya said, "When we get to the firing platform we have an errand to run."

* * *

4pm. Three hours to firing.

There was of course, no time to construct a fully operable bunker with computer interface. Even with the prefab modules, it would take too much time in testing to make sure it worked. Instead, walls and a ceiling were built large enough to park several Type 2 command vehicles inside the protected shell. The right-most one was facing the firing platform with several windows.

Yui Ikari was just outside of this, speaking with several technicians as they were discussing the firing angle. Far off in the distance, the rhythmic glinting off the Angel's surface was periodically winking like a countdown timer.

Someone approached Yui from behind with important strides. "Doctor Ikari," Kyoko toned, "I need a word with you."

"In a moment." Yui replied to her and turned back to the technicians.

"_Now."_ Kyoko toned.

Yui held up a hand to Kyoko with her index finger extended. She finished the conversation with the technicians before she turned back to Kyoko. "Very well doctor, what can I do for you?"

Kyoko presented a clipboard to Yui. "We cannot use the Third Children. These are the results of my medical examination."

Yui took the clipboard from Kyoko and started paging through the results. Kyoko went on as Yui was reading, "I believe he is unstable. His vital signs are unpredictable, and his psyche graph is too variable. Moreover, his behavior on his first synchronization test makes him unfit for an operation of this magnitude. It is the department's recommendation to replace him immediately with the Second Children."

Yui didn't say anything for a few seconds as she looked over the report. "Evangelion 02 is still undergoing repair." Yui said, "It will not be possible to utilize the second children. Moreover, she's injured."

"The second children is clear for operations." Kyoko said.

Yui's eyes flicked up to Kyoko. "Her unit is still down."

"We will put her in Unit 01." Kyoko said.

Yui answered without a beat, "Not possible."

"And why not?" Kyoko demanded just as quickly.

Yui closed the report and handed it back to Kyoko. "We have no data on cross-pilot placement Doctor. That is too great of a risk for me to accept for this operation."

"Evangelion 01 performed sufficiently with the First Children piloting."

"Sufficient is not ideal." Yui countered.

Kyoko put her arms on her hips. "The Third children is a liability. He has had less than a week of training in Evangelion operations, The second has been actively practicing for five months."

"The Third children's synchronization scores are also remarkably higher." Yui replied.

Kyoko's temper flared. "The Third Child couldn't find his way out of a paper bag without the entire technical division swooning over him!"

"I imagine it is no different than the entire German staff supporting your daughter." Yui replied.

"Don't you dare compare my daughter to that snot-nosed runt you handpicked to pilot your temperamental prototype!"

By now some technicians around the platform had stopped to watch the exchange going on, now that it was audible across the platform.

Kyoko continued, "I will not allow you to compromise our best chances of success for your maternal desire to see your child perform to your satisfaction!"  
"Nor will I, for your daughter." Yui replied. With a calm expression Yui continued, "We do not have the luxury of switching pilots at this time. The Third's unit is intact, and he has a higher synchronization score than the Second. He has been in constant practice since awakening today and showed a remarkable improvement. Your daughter is still in recovery from injuries sustained last night, to say nothing of you driving her for your own maternal-"

Kyoko's open palm was intercepted by Yui's wrist.

"If you strike me," Yui said, "you will be suspended from all Evangelion operations. Remove yourself from Operation Yashima and remain on standby in Tokyo-3." Her eyes narrowed, "You will watch, like the rest of us."

Kyoko lowered her hand, scowled at Yui before storming off.

Yui watched her go, then turned to look at the corner of the concrete bunker housing the command vehicles. The technicians, and Ritsuko Akagi, were all watching.

Yui advanced to them. "Resume your activities."

The technicians all split, but Ritsuko waited. Yui came up to the doctor and said, "Notify Ensign Ibuki that she will be monitoring pilot health during this operation."

"Yes Doctor." Ritsuko replied.

Yui kept walking. Ritsuko watched her go, sighed, then uttered, "I knew it."

* * *

At 4:45, Shinji heard an evacuation notice was going across the city. "E-Evacuate?" Shinji asked as he sat in the medical tent.

Maya blinked. "Yes Shinji," She said as he brought his Plugsuit back over his neck. She went on, "The citizens are being moved out of their shelters now and to secondary evacuation areas away from the city."

Shinji thought about the ramifications of that, then suddenly asked, "C-Can I make a call? There's someone I want to talk to!"

Maya blinked at his urgency. "Uh... who?"

Shinji's fists closed as he pushed his personal request out of his face. "It-It's the class rep at my school. I-I..."

It occurred to Shinji that he haddn't checked on her since yesterday, with everything going on. His fists squeezed tighter at the thought that something happened to her.

"I-I wanted to make sure she was all right." Shinji replied, looking down.

Maya looked at him, smiled, then said, "Let me see what I can do, but there may not be much time, they're moving out now."

* * *

The Shelter system in Tokyo-3 was a series of underground bunkers that local residents were ordered to go into during an Angel attack or other catastrophe. When people had moved into Tokyo-3, they were assigned these different shelters, and accommodations were built to a fixed number of people.

For the Horakis, that shelter was 22A. It was located in the hills to the north of the school. Right now trucks had been parked at the rear entrance, taking on survivors to prepare moving them away from the city.

"Hikari!" Someone was calling across the emptying enclosure, "Phone for you!"

Hikari, just finishing with hefting her bag, hurried over to it with a perplexed look on her face. Who could it be? She took it from the man holding it. "T-This is Hikari..."

"Cl-Class rep! It's Shinji!"

"Shinji! How did you get this phone?!"

"I-I pulled some strings... are you all right?"

Hikari winced. How did he do that? "I'm fine for now," Hikari said, "They're moving us out of this shelter. Are you all right? Where are you?"

"S-Someplace safe." Shinji replied, "I-I just wanted to check to see... see if you were all right."

Hikari smiled to herself. " That's sweet of you Shinji! We're headed to offsite shelter 22B. Do you think we can meet up when we get there?"

"I... I dunno." Shinji replied, "I... I'm not sure if I'll be able to see you for a while. I-I just wanted to say..."

Hikari coiled the phone cord around her finger absently as she listened.

"T-Take care of yourself. I-I hope to see you again, soon!"

Hikari was still smiling. She didn't know why, but these were the words she chose to use, "Good luck, Shinji."

Someone called to her by the exit. "Hey! Let's go!"

Hikari spoke into the phone, "I have to go Shinji! Do your homework!"

"I-I will-!" Shinji replied before the phone hung up. Hikari turned and ran for the door- she was the last one in the shelter.

When she boarded the transport, she was able to move through the truck's covered back bed to find her older sister and father. Sitting beside her older sister she took in a breath and sighed it out.

Kodama, watching her face, asked, "What was all that about? Did something happen?"

"N-Nothing!" Hikari answered a little too quickly and brought her knees up to her chest, folding her bag in front of her. She stared into her knees, thinking at the exchange. _He called me_... She thought, _He went out of his way to call me..._ _Why... why this feeling?_

* * *

Shinji felt a fist of warmth in his chest as he boarded the Evangelion.

It was simply a matter of hopping in the cockpit as the entry plug was jutting outward into the open air. The forward push was not as dramatic this time, and even though the lights were on in the plug, he closed his eyes.

When he opened them again he sat through the lights, tightening his grip as he rode through it.

At the moment, he felt powerful.

He was standing his machine even as the interface was completing the startup checks. So focused was he on performing his mission that he was startled at the message. It was shorter this time, and he burned the characters into his mind as his Evangelion stood.

He paused a moment to think about it. Yes, that is what it said. I BELIEVE IN YOU.

It was a little odd, seeing that message so targeted. But he re-gripped the control yokes. If anything, it meant that his Evangelion was also ready to help him. "Evangelion 01," he said, confidence finally in his voice. "Ready."


	7. Chapter 7: Summit

**VII. SUMMIT**

The command vehicles had been fully staffed with everyone ready at their consoles. Heads turned when Shinji made his report. Ritsuko, at the back of the vehicle, leaned forward to the console Maya was seated at. "Is his Synch ratio up?"

"...Yes!" Maya replied after checking, "It's at 48%! This is the highest we've seen him!"

Ritsuko leaned backward. "That must have been some phone call. I think he's ready. What about Rei?"

Maya turned to another monitor readout. "Evangelion 00 is still stable. Rei's operational time is just over five minutes, no abnormalities reported. She's ready to go, too."

Ritsuko nodded as she looked at the operational levels of the prototype Evangelion. Nodding again she said, "it will have to do." She turned to call to the front of the room, "Evangelions are ready!"

Misato was at the front of the cab, standing over Hyuga and some of the other operators. "Weapon status?" She asked.

Hyuga nodded, "It's coming up now. We'll be ready to fire in twenty minutes."

Misato's eyes glanced at the clock. 5:45. They had only a little over an hour to complete this operation. This was going to be close.

* * *

Shinji walked his Evangelion to the platform, then knelt it as instructed. As he waited he looked around.

Evangelion 00 had approached the platform, and Shinji could see what Rei's job was, at last. Mounted in it's grip was the massive underbelly of a space plane. The ragged edges were frayed from the cutting, suggesting its improvised nature. Shinji swallowed... it didn't look like much in the way of defense. He hoped she would be okay...

Moments after Rei took position off to his left, The Weapon rolled into position on his right. Shinji watched it approach through the camera, surprised to see just how accurate the simulation was to the real thing.

"Shinji," Maya's voice cut in, "As we practiced, mount the weapon."

It took a lot of practice just to learn how to shoulder the bulky weapon. Kneeling beside the machine he reached into the gantry, grabbing the fore-grip and lifting it. The right shoulder pylon of his Evangelion had been removed, allowing him to seat the weapon's shoulder grip over the Evangelion's actual shoulder. He swing the left hand forward, grabbing the foregrip.

He then aimed the weapon into the distance. In the cockpit, he let go of the left grip and gestured, hitting a command button he imagined out of thin air. The seat behind his head parted, and a tactical scope swung over space to seat in front of his face. The tactical scope powered on, giving him a zoomed in projection on the target.

Another abstract control he pressed, and the tactical scope flicked. Now he was looking down the barrel of the PHASER.

Shinji took in a breath, then let it out slowly. This would be routine... focus on the training... no big deal...

He hoped he could do this. He swallowed nervously, and lined the barrel up with the exact center of the Angel.

* * *

"One hour remaining." Hyuga said from his command station.

Three different languages were buzzing in the command room now. Misato, nearly a day without sleep, stared with bloodshot eyes and an energy drink in hand. Swigging the last of it, she set it down on the command console. Reaching up to her headset she said, "This is Captain Katusragi. The time is 6:00. We are commencing Operation Yashima. All hands to battle stations."

Klaxons wailed both over the platform and across Tokyo-3. All was in readiness.

Misato clutched her headset. "Begin PHASER charge!"

"Roger," The technicians said, "Transferring power from the water-exchange unit."

Another voice chimed in, "Pre-charge ready!"

A third. "Initiating second connection."

The chorus continued.

"Starting accelerators!"

"Starting converger!"

"Transferring power from the Mt. Gotemba sub-station. No errors detected."

Ritsuko stared at the displays. "Pre-warm up sequence completed. Activation commencing. Initiating third connection."

All eyes were focused on the status of the weapon as all the power of Japan coursed through a line of transformer cars leading up to the PHASER. Shinji, kneeling, held the weapon as steady as his Evangelion could. Beside him, Evangelion 00's knees bent as Rei entered a dynamic stance- ready to respond to anything.

Ritsuko held her own headset. "PHASER crews, stand ready. Pre-fire chamber is green, vacuum detected. Plasma generators on standby. Internal connections show green. Beginning helix rotation."

Within the two spheres of the PHASER, internal rotors started whirring counter-direction from one another. In addition to being part of the generation process, it also stabilized the weapon.

Misato had been watching the Angel. She was a little surprised they were able to get this far in the charge process without retaliating... maybe they were out of the thing's range after all. "Aoba," she commanded, "Begin phase 2."

The batteries of Tokyo-03 had been reloaded as discreetly as they could underneath the Angels' detection. Now, they opened fire with all the brilliance of the previous night. Hillside batteries vomited scores of golden bolts into the air at the Angel. Rockets were leaving from their building silos.

Unlike last night however, the Angel was retaliating. The structure came apart, forming new geometric patterns as the flash of the Angel's beam began incinerating batteries in the hillsides.

Misato was watching. "Increase fire rate on the kinetic cannons, I don't care if the barrels overheat."

The remaining crews of those batteries rigged their weapons accordingly and abandoned them, running for the nearest shelter and hoping they could make it before they were destroyed. Behind them, the magazine chains were running so fast the line was a blur.

Misato was watching the massive flare of the A.T. Field. It was so active now the Angel was practically hidden under the continual wash of explosive force. The only indication it was still there were the occasional flashes of the thing's beam as it tried to silence the attackers. "Artillery!" Misato cried, "Open fire!"

Warships from the Pacific Naval Fleet were parked several miles away. Battleships from the American and Japanese Navies opened fire with their Type 3 kinetic rounds. They arced over the hills before slamming into the A.T. field, serving as more indirect artillery the Angel couldn't respond to.

As all this was going on Ritsuko was focused on the last phase of the arming procedure. "All circuits engaged, Lieutenant."

"Standing by Number One." The leader of the PHASER crew replied, "Energetic Plasma is at 94% potency. Ready for transfer!"

Shinji, in the cockpit, saw the HUD interface for the PHASER materialize before him. "Setting 12..." he uttered as he concentrated.

The connector between the two spheres rotated to a final setting, designating the power possible out of the PHASER.

Ritsuko nodded. "Compensating for gravitational field. -0.009, Auto-correct."

One of the Angel's responses flashed wide, missing batteries but torching an entire valley as it tried to respond to some of the sea-side cruisers. Most of the technicians were focused on making sure this weapon worked, but a few of them realized the distance to the coastline was a lot further than the distance between their seats and the Angel.

Ritsuko nodded as the last checks were green. "Commencing Primary Ignition."

The weapon toned in Shinji's cockpit and he saw the green bar charge. This was it.

He re-seated his grip on the handles. He was not afraid. Not in this moment. Not as the Angel, whirling under the red dot that was its life, swung around as it retaliated against a world out to destroy it.

"This is it..." he breathed, "my shot..."

Ritsuko's voice broke in. "You may fire when ready. Visors!"

The assembled crews of the firing platform now lifted red-tinted googles to their faces in anticipation of the naked PHASER beam.

The firing crew waited on Shinji's command. "Standby!"

Shinji zeroed in the meter as instructed. One second...

"Standby-!"

Shinji squeezed the trigger as he had practiced hundreds of times, exhaling as he did.

A warbling whine was heard on the firing platform as the PHASER spooled up in power. It took three seconds to charge the beam to maximum power. The spheres were pulsing and glowing as the high-energy plasma was cycled from the rear tank, then modulated, to the front pre-firing chamber. After that, it went through the Corbomite crystal and…well… only simulators told them what happened next.

"Rapid Nadons detected!" Hyuga called over the platform.

Two unfortunate technicians who were outside the bunker, in radiation suits, covered their faces as the PHASER entered the last second of charge.

Ritsuko shouted, "PROTONIC CHARGE-"

A brilliant blue beam of raw power issued from the barrel of the PHASER the diameter of a commuter train car. To all who could see it for a brief second, it was indeed a fat blue-white beam of energy so brilliant that it darkened the air immediately around it. The entire civilized power generation of Japan was pouring through that beam.

It struck the Angel so powerfully the massive shape recoiled from the blast. A Brilliant set of octagonal rings flashed to resist the beam, growing brighter in intensity as the PHASER continued to pour on more power.

Misato screamed into her headset, "GIVE IT EVERYTHING AOBA!"

Every battery of defense in Tokyo-03 was firing, as one, against the Angel. Strategic bombers, flying miles away, launched their heavy missile payloads. The navy on the coast was making continuous fire, trying to stop the thing. They were running out of projectiles.

* * *

Shinji kept the PHASER pointed on direct target as he had practiced, correcting any sway with the Evangelion's hands as the entire power of Japan coursed over his shoulder. He couldn't tell if he was winning the battle or not, he was just focused on doing his job.

For Hikari.

For Asuka.

For Maya, Ritsuko, and everyone else on the base.

"Increasing power!" Ritsuko cried over the communications channel.

Hyuga spoke, "Surpassing safety thresholds! Time over operation three seconds...four seconds..."

Shinji haddn't been instructed to let go, so he kept the trigger down.

Ritsuko, in the bunker, glanced at the Radiation bloom along the end of the barrel. It was a good thing the city buildings had been retracted and they were firing over the lake- the radiation would have cooked anyone alive if they were standing on street-level in front of the Angel. If they cleaned this up, they'd have to restrict access to that area for a while.

The Angel's A.T. Field was flaring pure white.

The batteries, between Angel counter-attack and ammunition depletion, were starting to die one by one. The missiles collided with the A.T. Field, flaring it so brightly that it was painful to look at. Watching all of this, Misato uttered in horror, "What a monster..."

A technician's voice broke through the low roar of the PHASER, "Circuits overheating! We'll have to cease power-"

Something popped.

The Beam ended.

The Angel collapsed backwards, and the whine started to die from the PHASER.

Silence filled the valley, palpable and disquieting.

Misato stared. "It's not dead." She whirled, "What happened?"

The crews responded, "One of the circuit capacitor cars overheated! We'll have to replace it."

"TIME!"

"Thirty minutes-"

Ritsko Barked into the comm, "Rei, Go!"

* * *

Rei threw down the ragged shield and started her Evangelion at a run, crossing in front of Shinji's firing arc and vaulting over the charge arrays. The ground crews, seeing the flying Evangelion, all ran from it as Rei crashed into the forest on the back side of the hill.

The yellow-painted Evangelion whirled and looked down. At least three technicians were pointing at one particular transformer car.

Rei reached down and grabbed the entire car. Hyuga had the foresight to make the trains decouple in a situation like this, making it easy for Rei to pick up the car and hurtle it into the distance. She grabbed one of the six spares sitting on rails beside the transformer train and brought it to the power train with a mixture of haste and delicacy. Once landed, technicians swarmed over the train then, making the final connections.

"Leave the small connections to the power team." Ritsuko was saying, "Watch the copper connections."

* * *

Shinji was starting at the thing as it was beginning to come back together again, picking up speed gradually despite the withering firepower still being rained from above by a vengeful airforce. Even as the weapons were hitting the naked skin of the angel, it didn't seem phased. Fear started to grip Shinji by the throat as he realized this…_thing_ intended on extinguishing him before the thing itself was killed. He clicked the trigger, only for the female voice of the PHASER to tell him there was no charge available.

Rei was working as rapidly as she could. The PHASER team was walking her through it on the ground end- taking the risk of being so close to the handiwork of the Evangelion to monitor it personally. "Test!" The officer cried.

A beep toned in the cockpit. "No!" Ritsuko replied.

The director of the ground team pointed and ordered some of his men to try something else.

The Angel was shifting back upright, re-forming into the diamond.

"R-Ritsuko!" Shinji cried.

"Test!" Ritsuko called.

Beep.

"No." Maya responded.

Hyuga sat up, "Captain! The copper connector on the train is damaged. It needs to be held down in order for transmission-"

Ritsuko whirled to Maya, "Confirm, conductivity of Evangelion hand-plate armor!"

Maya took less than a second. "22% conductivity!"

Ritsuko held her microphone down. "Rei, You'll have to hold down the transformer!"

"What!?" Misato barked.

"Understood." Rei replied. The fingers of her Evangelion closed around the Transformer, pushing gently.

"Red Alert!" Ritsuko screamed, "Emergency Procedure 3!"

This went out over all radio frequencies. To anyone in the know, it meant bypassing all verbal checks and confirmations unless there was a problem in transmission. All valves were open, no impediments were to be put in the way of firing the gun.

Power came back to Shinji. He did not hesitate in pushing down the trigger.

The PHASER started to hum to life again.

Shinji also saw the Angel starting to unfold. His mouth went agape, but he did not release the trigger. It was now a race to see who fired first- the Angel, or the PHASER.

Another alarm was shrilling in the command center- this time from Evangelion 00's status display. Maya barked. "Reading EM discharges into unit 00's arm blocks!"

Rei's hold on the power converter was a shivering one, and the arms of the Evangelion were jerking at the voltage being carried into the skin and structure of the Evangelion. It was slowly being electrocuted. Rei grit her teeth, despite loosing the feeling in her arms and the increasing pain stabbing down her shoulders. She gave a whimper as it flicked her heart.

Maya saw the status readout of Rei's condition and shouted, "Pilot signs on unit 00 in danger! FIRE!"  
"FIRE NOW!" Misato commanded the weapon.

It obeyed.

The brilliant blue beam of electromagnetic energy, potent enough to be visible, lanced out of the Phaser at setting 12. The Angel's counter attack died at a being a single flash against it's skin before it was forced to resist the PHASER beam once again.

"Misato!" Shinji cried, "I need everything!"

Ritsuko blasted into her radio, "All stops out! Kill the dampeners!"

Ritsuko's last command was to remove the safety inhibitors from the PHASER's plasma converter remotely. Explosive bolts kicked the restriction tubes out of the back of the barrel, flying into the forest and setting fires. Though this now presented the risk of rupturing the chamber and pouring molten plasma on to Eva 01's back, it was the only option open to defeat the Angel.

It was out of their hands now.

The increase in power made the weapon's barrel and pre-fire chamber glow as more power was poured on. Shinji, fighting the rumble in the chamber, began to grunt as he fought with the weapon, holding it tightly with the Eva's hands.

Rei screamed.

The AT Field on the Angel snapped visibly and the beam went through it in the next instant. Holding down the trigger, the beam continued through the angel and into the mountains behind it, boring a long trail through the landscape as matter was converted directly into energy from contact with the beam.

Shinji continued focusing on the Angel with the PHASER, following the hulk of the body down to the city level. His Evangelion eased up from the couching position as his eyes danced around secondary displays- making sure he burned the entirety of the core away. When CORE NOT FOUND flashed in his vision, he followed the structure down, burning out the heart of the monster.

Hyuga announced over the comm, "Target is silent! No blood pattern detected!"

"Cease Fire!" Misato commanded.

Shinji released the trigger.

The humm and whine of the PHASER started to die down, and he only panted in the cockpit as silence once again fell over the lake. Vapor and smoke was clearing from the city, and all he could see there was the glow from some fires started by the proximity of the beam. The sun was setting beneath the hills to the west, illuminating the clouds in hues of pink and red.

Everyone was quiet in the command center, until Misato gathered a breath for a declaration.

Ritsuko beat her to it. "Shinji! You did it!"

* * *

In the cockpit Shinji released the breath of air that he had been holding. But another thought immediately hit him. "Ayanami!"

Shinji let the PHASER drop off of his shoulder as the Evangelion whirled. His strides were urgent as he left the firing platform and advanced on where Evangelion 00 had toppled backwards. Technicians who had converged on Evangelion 00 braced themselves as the massive purple Evangelion crash-crouched next to the fallen Evangelion.

In the command car Ritsuko had immediately re-focused. "Signs of the pilot?"

Maya shook her head, "I don't have any signal from Evangelion 00! Eject signal is not working!"

Ritsuko silently cursed the Prototype's stubborn features and whipped a hand up to her headset. "Shinji, listen to me. Pry off the armored cover behind the Evangelion's head."

* * *

Shinji did as directed with gusto. The yellow covering that sat on top of the plug was yanked off, and Shinji threw it several miles into the distance. The plug automatically sprung out from the connection point, and four geysers of LCL blasted out of the plug.

Shinji didn't care if it was still electrocuted or not, he pulled the white plug from the unit and ignored the spiking pain of his Evangelion's arm as he landed the plug. Then he brought his own Evangelion down to lie on its face. His next action was to will the plug to eject, which it activated without him having to consciously thinking about the precise steps.

In a minute he was out of the plug, ignoring how cold his face felt from the LCL drying on his skin. He slid down the purple armor, eyes darting across the crevices as he tried to find a safe way down the landed arm of the Evangelion.

He raced to the landed plug. Before he could get there a technician in radiation protection gear raced up to stop him. "Kid, KID! STOP!"

The technician grabbed him. "Let me go!" Shinji cried.

Another technician advancing threw a couple of copper cables at the plug. When it didn't spark, he gestured to the man restricting Shinji. The Third Child continued breaking into a run towards the plug's emergency exit hatch. Crashing against it he worked his hands in the emergency release handles.

Three technicians ultimately helped him open the hatch, whereupon he crawled inside. "Ayanami!"

The girl had collapsed on a chair identical to Shinji's own entry plug seat. She wasn't moving. "Ayanami!" He grabbed her, "Ayanami!" He tried shaking the girl, only to realize she wasn't breathing. "No…"

He heard a whine in her chest unit and nearly dropped her as he heard the thump in her chest. Then it happened again, and she took in a gasp of air. "Ayanami!" Shinji cried.

The girl moaned softly.

Shinji moved over her, grabbing her and bringing her close to him. As she sighed and shivered against his body he wondered…why was he doing this? He hardly knew Rei. Why had...

_Because she put her life on the line for me_.

Soberly, he relaxed his grip a little. Looking down at her it hit him then that... she was also a pilot, like him. In spite of his father's smiles at her, she was still here, risking her life. Perhaps she was doing it unwillingly.

"Ik...Ikari." Rei uttered.

"You're all right!" Shinji beamed with relief.

Jerkily the girl reached up and dabbed at Shinji's cheek. "Wh-What is this?"

Shinji didn't realize he had been crying until he felt the tears welling up in his eyes. He reached up to clear them. "Th-They're tears..."

"Tears?" Rei replied. Bilking with innocent confusion, she asked, "Why would you be sad?"  
"I-I'm not!" Shinji replied as he wiped his eyes again. "I-I'm happy! Happy you're alive!"

She was puzzled at his expression. "I-I do not understand. Why are you concerned if I would be alive or dead?"

"B-Because you're like me! A pilot!" Shinji replied, "I-I wouldn't want you to die. I-I want to work with you again."

Rei didn't understand. "But I only did as I was ordered..."

Shinji smiled and shook his head. Rei's oddity may be off putting in other days and in other situations, but Shinji was only oddly relieved to know that she was okay. "I'm just happy you're fine."

Shinji wiped his eyes again as he sat in his relief. Rei, blinking, said, "I do not know what I should do in a case like this."

"You could smile." Shinji replied, "Smile that you're alive."

"Smile?" Rei repeated, tilting her head a little. As Shinji watched, her mouth started to curl upward a little bit. It was a grin!

Shinji smiled back. He took a breath of air to say something when someone interrupted him from the plug's entrance.

"Hey kid," The man said, "Move."

* * *

Shinji was barely out of the entry plug when the technicians pushed past him. As Shinji stepped away from the plug he realized a stretcher had been pulled next to the plug, and medical personnel were rushing up to support Rei. He remained standing there as Rei was extracted from the plug. She looked at him as she was being put on the stretcher, then wheeled away. A jet copter with a bright red cross painted on the side was coming in for a landing.

Shinji stopped to look around the clearing he found himself in and catch his breath. He stumbled and collapsed on the ground to sit. He sighed and looked up at the sky.

He did it. Everyone was safe.

"Shinji!" Maya called. Shinji sat up and saw Maya running across the ground towards him with a blanket. Behind her Ritsuko was approaching at a more leisurely pace.

Maya crashed into the ground beside him and wrapped the blanket around him as she gave him a huge hug. "You did it you did it you did it!" She wailed into his shoulder.

Shinji looked up at Ritsuko as the doctor approached. "Will Rei be all right?"

"They're airlifting her back to the base for medical attention." Ritsuko replied, "We had to re-start her heart. We wouldn't have been able to do it if you haddn't pulled the plug out of there."

Shinji sighed with relief, then asked, "W-What about the Angel?"

"It's dead." Ritsuko said. Maya leaned back and started to help Shinji up as Ritsuko went on, "The drill bit is approximately twelve meters from the roof of the Geofront. Evidently the PHASER slowed down the drilling as well."

Shinji nodded and brought the blanket over him. "I-Is everyone okay?"

Ritsuko closed her eyes. "We did lose a few people when we were making sure you got the power you needed, Shinji. But" She opened her eyes, "You saved everyone. Me, Maya, the base, the city..."

"The world!" Maya added.

Shinji nodded and started to smile. He did it. He did it! He succeeded at this task! He looked to the sky again to take a breath.

Then he realized how tired he was and staggered. He coughed.

Maya was there to catch him. "C'mon kiddo," She said, "Let's get you back to the base. You must be exhausted."

"N-Not as much as you..." Shinji replied.

Ritsuko felt herself touched by Shinji's concern. "We'll get some well deserved rest," She said, "All of us. Come, we have a transport of our own waiting."

Shinji felt himself nod. He was barely conscious when they reached the ground car that had come to collect them. He was asleep when he re-entered Tokyo-3's city limits.


	8. Chapter 8: Hazards

**VIII. HAZARDS**

_I__t started with a song._

_ The soft, singsong melody of the words was beyond him. He could only hear the soft whispering voice of the woman singing._

_ He was… somewhere close. Somewhere comfortable. The field beyond in his vision was a sketch of a grassland with a blue sky, a tree, and mountains in the distance. The warm sunlight was beating down on his face._

_ …But things were moving slowly, stuttered. Like animation played at half speed. _

_ "Na…na..na…."_

_ There was just enough power in the voice to hear the tone the woman was using as she was singing. It was…..!_

_ Shinji's head jerked backwards and upward._

_ Only a pair of eyes looked down at him._

"Gha!" He gasped sharply, bolting upright in the darkened room.

Shinji panted in the darkness, sweat on his body, and looked up. He was on a cot in some room, with barely any furnishings. He had slept naked, his Plugsuit had been discarded on the floor. Realizing this wasn't his apartment he let himself fall back on to the bed. "Another unfamiliar ceiling…"

He rolled back and tried to get some sleep, but it wouldn't come immediately. He was wondering what exactly he had just seen in that dream… and why the voice sounded so familiar….

* * *

It would be a while before downtown Tokyo-3 would be habitable again.

It wasn't just the horrible pool of alien blood or the stench coming out of the hole formed out of the Angel's bore hole. There were concerns of the ground being irradiated from the PHASER's beam. NERV was still drawing up a plan on how to deal with it before the downtown city buildings could be raised from their defensive posture. Additionally, the matter of disposing of the Angel's Remains was something that needed considering as well.

Fortunately with most of the buildings secured below-ground, they had been spared. Once the surface had been decontaminated, they could be raised and the city skyline restored.

At least the all-clear had been granted for some areas of the city. Civilians were already coming back into the approved areas to check on their homes. Of the three attacks so far this was not the most damaging to property, but it had been the most widespread. As people were coming back into the city all of them could see the remains of the Angel across the flat, armored plains of Tokyo-3.

For Shinji, however, his residence was not in the clearance zone. He had checked the maps, called the bridge to double check... but he wouldn't be allowed home. He had to bunk in the temporary quarters on-base for a while.

At least he could shower in the residence block he was quartered in. After he did so he suited back up, left the assigned room, and ran straight into someone as he turned a blind corner. "Ah! S-Sorry!"

"No problem." A man's voice said. Shinji looked up to see the man offering him a hand up. Shinji took it and rose up. "Hey," The man said, "You're one of the pilots... Ikari?"

"Y-Yeah," Shinji replied, "S-Shinji."  
Releasing Shinji the man said, "I'm Shigeru Aoba, one of the bridge operators. I think we spoke earlier, pleased to meet you."

"H-Hello!" Shinji replied. He wondered how often this was going to happen. The man was dressed in a uniform similar to Maya's. "U-Um... you wouldn't happen to know H-How I would get to the cages, w-would you?"

"Huh," Shigeru muttered and stroked his chin. "It's a bit complicated to get there from here. How about I take you there after I'm done here?"

Shinji blinked. "W-What are you doing here?"

Shigeru looked up and pointed. "Meeting her."

Shinji turned around.

Maya was advancing on them as she was sorting through a purse. She was wearing a nice dark pinstripe dress that she looked pretty in. Shinji blinked- it was the first time he saw Maya in something other than her uniform.

Looking up she noticed Shinji, "Ah! You're up Shinji, and-!" She paused, then saw the man. "Shigeru! Why are you in uniform? We were supposed to have a lunch date!"

Shigeru grunted as he looked away. "I got called in early on-shift... I tried to call you."

"You did?" Maya asked. She fumbled through her purse again and pulled out her phone. Scowling, she noticed it was off. "Oops..."

"I'm really sorry." Shigeru said as he walked around Shinji and approached Maya. "I'll make it up to you- how about Dinner? It's on me."

Maya glanced at her watch. "I go on duty at 1730 hours..."

"What?" Shigeru exclaimed. Sighing, he said, "Well, how about a compromise? What's a good time in between?"

Maya thought about it. "Lun...er?"

"Luncher. 1300. I'll see if I can sneak out around then." Shigeru said.

Maya nodded, then reached forward to give him a hug. "All right. Promise me!"

"I promise." Shigeru replied. Releasing from her, he smiled down at her before he parted, then started down the hallway in the direction Maya came in. He waved over his shoulder, "A pleasure to meet you Mister Ikari! Thank you for what you did yesterday."

Shinji found himself waving back. "N-No problem!"

Maya, glancing at Shinji again, got an impish grin on her face and called after Shigeru, "Aoba! If you break your promise I'll take Shinji to dinner instead!"

"What?" He called back from down the hall, catching Maya's snickering expression.

Shinji on the other hand was lost in the brief imagination of what a dinner date with Maya would look like. She was pretty... and being older than him she was mature... and she was sweet...

Maya turned around to see Shinji lost in thought, blushing slightly. "Oh dear..." She uttered.

The image of Ritsuko's knowing look came into her mind unbidden. She sighed.

Shinji was snapped out of his stupor by hearing her troubled. "Uh... are you okay Maya?"

"I'm fine!" She replied a little too quickly. She regained her composure. "Well, now that I'm free for the Evening Shinji, is there anything you would like to do?"

Shinji blinked and looked down at his plugsuit.

* * *

Ritsuko Akagi slept like the dead.

She needed the rest, though. Yui, uncharacteristically, told her to take the time off. "You need rest to be at peak efficiency." Yui had said, "Take eight hours' rest, then return."

Ritsuko did as she was instructed. Now she was back in her office, catching up on technical reports and equipment requisitions. Another day at the office. Glancing at the calendar she at least took some comfort in the fact that it was Friday.

Already? It felt like Shinji had just arrived-

A particular knock on the glass door to her office got Ritsuko's attention and she looked up from her desk. The red-jacketed Misato Katsuragi was there with an impish smile on her face. Ritsuko gestured for her to come in, and Misato did so. "Whew," She sighed, "What a night."

Ritsuko turned to Misato while the latter grabbed a particular wheeled chair and dragged it into the center of the office. "Didn't get much sleep?" Ritsuko asked.

Misato plopped down in the chair and popped open the canned coffee she brought with her. She leaned back in the chair- further than it would normally allow someone to recline. Ritsuko kept this broken chair specifically for her best friend to do just this. "Nope." Misato finally answered, "Three guesses."

"Hrnnn..." Ritsuko mused, "Kaji?"

"Nope."

"The Ikaris."

"Nah-ah."

Ritsuko blinked. "Kyoko."

"Bingo!" Misato said, jabbing a finger at Ritsuko with one hand while she sipped coffee with the other. Then she leaned back in the chair again. "Your other half didn't have anyone else to complain to, so she chose to bitch at me."

Ritsuko sighed and facepalmed. "What about? No, wait," Ritsuko lowered her hand, "It's Shinji isn't it."

Misato said, "Apparently she petitioned Commander Ikari directly about Shinji's mental instability on... oh how did she put it..." Misato put a finger to her forehead as he tried to remember the exact phrasing. It came to her. "Conducting a highly dangerous and irresponsible rescue attempt, and endangering the life of a pilot in critical condition."

Ritsuko sighed and said, "I figured as much. You know she falsified an examination to try getting Shinji grounded from piloting?"

Misato sat up ramrod straight. "Why hasn't she been fired?"

"I don't know." Ritsuko replied, "I had him take another examination once Maya double-checked the computer records. I forwarded my results to the Ikaris last night. Nothing."

Misato stared into space as she considered the ramifications. Shaking her head she said, "I know for a fact you're not the only one with a complaint against her."

"She tried striking Doctor Ikari directly when it was clear Asuka wouldn't be put into Evangelion 01."

Misato was standing now. "Why _the fuck_ hasn't she been fired!?"

Ritsuko was slowly shaking her head. "I don't know."

"It's not like she out-ranks you." Misato pointed out, "Are the Ikaris protecting her or something? If she pulls this shit with me in the field I'm not going to hold back. And you bet your ass it's going to be _my_ career on the line for a stunt like that."

Ritsuko picked up her coffee cup and noticed it was empty. Setting it down she said, "Shinji's parents have some stake in Shinji's abilities. I was there on the platform when Kyoko tried to present the evidence to shut Shinji down. She said no, in spite of the evidence Kyoko was presenting." She looked at Misato, "This is before Maya ran the revised medical examination."

Misato stared into space. "This doesn't make sense. I mean... good on the kid, making it in and saving the world in spite of Kyoko's bullshit. But," She looked at Ritsuko and bent her knees in emphasis as she nearly hollered, "_What the fuck is she doing?_ This behavior is brazenly unprofessional. What's so great about Kyoko that the Ikaris are willing to overlook?

Ritsuko stopped to think about it. She raised some fingers as she thought aloud, "She's one of the original architects of the mind-machine interfaces used by the Evangelion."

"Ok, but you know that part too."

"Not as good as her." Ritsuko said as an aside, then tapped off another finger, "She's worked with Evangelion construction since the beginning, my background was from MAGI." Another finger, "I suppose she could be one of the people connected with the early tests of the mind-machine interface-"

"Wait, test it?" Misato said, "I thought Rei was our first test pilot. Are you saying she wasn't?"

Ritsuko adjusted her seat to face Misato. "So you understand, confirmation is outside of my clearance level. All I have are rumors."

Misato took her seat again.

"Okay." Ritsuko went on, "The rumor goes that Rei's first synchronization tests only went as well as they did because the bugs were worked out through several early connection tests. It stands to reason if she was working on the system, she could have been one of the first test pilots."

Misato was wincing at Ritsuko, and nodded then. "What do you think about that? You've known Kyoko longer than I have."

Ritsuko tilted her head away as she thought about it. It wasn't an easy thought to dismiss, considering both of them worked together here in NERV. "When I first knew her I was just taking on responsibilities here. She was... different than she is now. Something happened, but I chalked it up to her marriage."

"That's right, she was married."

"I heard Victor was a piece of work." Ritsuko replied, "Never met the man. At the time I just figured she was throwing herself into her work in order to get over that. But now that you mention it..."

"It's been years since then." Misato said.

Ritsuko nodded.

Misato was wincing. "There might be something to that. Do you think they keep her here because she might have secrets worth protecting?"

"You and I both know," Ritsuko said, "Section Two is responsible for keeping secrets."

They didn't need to go further with that elaboration.

"But," Ritsuko said, "I agree, this is an abnormality. If it keeps up it might impact battle performance in the chain of command."

Misato pointed. "That will get the Ikari's attention." She folded her finger back into her fist as she leaned back into the chair and ran a hand through her hair. "That's something I learned the hard way after the first sorties. You want to get their attention, talk about efficiency."

Ritsuko nodded.

"Anyway," Misato said, "I came to talk about Shinji. Tell me about him, now that we have a moment."

Ritsuko smirked, then began, "He learns fast, and has the highest synch ratios of the pilots I've observed. That, more than anything I think, is what's driving Kyoko insane. She can't bear to have another pilot out-performing her daughter."

Misato scoffed. "And Kyoko has the gaul to accuse Yui of pulling parental favorites. What else?"

Ritsuko looked into space. "He's easily startled, but he's learning workarounds. I think if you give him enough time to prepare for a task, he'll do it." She winced, "There are issues there with his parents, but I haven't picked at it. He seems to make friends easily- he's one of the most caring people I've met, given his overwhelming concern for Asuka."

"That must drive Kyoko up the wall."

"It does. One of the key contention points, I gather."

Misato shook her head and stopped herself from diving into more speculation about Kyoko. Ritsuko, though, brought it up. "How did the debate with Kyoko go?"

Misato winced unhappily. "I told her pretty much what I imagine you or Yui did: Shinji's the best condition pilot with the best Evangelion. I told her I didn't care if Asuka's a God-given perfect child delivered to us custom-made for the purpose of killing Angels, she's not fighting if she's injured. She muttered something about you exerting your influence to protect him or some shit like that, then stormed out."

Ritsuko sighed. "I have done little of the sort. If anything, I was interceding to protect Asuka."

Misato glanced at the clock, grumbled, and started to rise form the chair. "Well, those reports aren't going to do themselves." She walked to the door to Ritsuko's office and stopped beside it. "Tell Ikari he did good, from me."

"Why don't you tell him yourself?" Ritsuko asked, "I don't think you had the chance to meet him formally. I think you should."

Misato dismissed it with a wave. "I don't do well with kids. Besides, I'm really too busy. Later."

"Later." Ritsuko replied. Misato passed through the glass door and walked into the similar glass-walled office across from Ritsuko. Waiting on Misato's desk were piles of papers.

Ritsuko started typing again at her desk, but stopped to return the stare from the photograph that was glaring up at her. She winced, then returned to her work.

* * *

Shinji tried not to think about the fact that his clothes were several days old without a wash. He recounted the days... he had been training to help reactivate Evangelion 00 two days ago. Yesterday was the battle... yes, two days in the same outfit. And he couldn't go home to collect the clothing he had bought when he got here! So, it was the white shirt and black pants again. He tried to hide his embarrassment.

...Especially as he was holding flowers and chocolate.

Maya beaming at him made him feel worse. "C'mon," Maya said, "You can't just visit without a get well gift!"

Shinji sheepishly grinned. When Maya started suggesting it Shinji haddn't put up much resistance- in part because he did want to get Asuka a gift. This was a little overkill though, and he didn't want to give the wrong impression.

...Even though he wanted Asuka to feel better.

With visitation rights cleared, Shinji and Maya walked through the hospital complex to arrive at Asuka's recovery ward. He opened the door gently-

-to reveal Kyoko inside, standing beside the bed.

Shinji blinked. "I...uh..."

"Out." Kyoko commanded.

Shinji's eyes moved from Kyoko to Asuka. The red-head's eyes were wide with fear of her own, having seen Shinji. Her mouth was saying something but Shinji couldn't hear it.

"I...uh..." Shinji said and lifted the gifts, "Wanted to bring-"

Kyoko turned completely and advanced on Shinji, forcefully pushing him from the room. "What- Hey!"

The gifts dropped from his grasp as Kyoko forcefully shoved him from the room and stepped out of the doorway, slamming it closed behind her. Shinji started standing up, but was helped quickly when Kyoko grabbed him and forced him upright. "A-Ah!"

Kyoko shoved Shinji at Maya, who caught the Third children. "Sh-Shinji!" Maya gasped.

"Ibuki," Kyoko said, "You are never to bring the third child here again. Is that understood?"

"Y-Yes ma'am!" Maya snapped. She didn't dare defy a superior.

Shinji was standing, coming to his senses. He looked at Kyoko and was met by the most intense look of disdain he had ever encountered.

"Listen to me, Third. I warned you to stay away from my daughter. Now I am making it a medical order- you are suspended from further contact with the second children. Failure to comply will result in expulsion and possible criminal charges."

Shinji, startled, blasted, "But I didn't do anything!"

"BE QUIET!" Kyoko blasted, stepping forward. Orderlies and patients up and down the hall now stopped and watched the conversation unfolding. "You will not drag my daughter down. I don't care if Akagi's swooning over you like some desperate mother hen, and I don't care if your parents are giving you the darling treatment by handing you the Evangelion to use like a toy. To me you are an amateur who does not deserve to be here. If you enter my daughter's presence again I will make your life hell for you. Stay. Away. From. Asuka. If you know what's good for you, you'd board a train to go back to wherever you came from."

Kyoko whirled and advanced back to Asuka's room. The door opened, then closed. The redhead was gone.

Shinji tried to remain standing as he did his best to contain his shaking. What...what was that? It wasn't fair! All he wanted to do was check on Asuka! Was... did she find out?

"Shinji let's go." Maya replied. She was grasping Shinji now. Leaning closer she said, "We can't help Asuka now. Let's get away from here and try to think of something."

Shinji, numbly, did as Maya suggested. His mind was racing as they made it to the elevators, and Maya programmed the lift to head to the surface. The requirement that Shinji had to stay away from Asuka was playing in his mind.

* * *

Shinji didn't make it that far. He was recalled to HQ as soon as he made it to the lobby. Maya, still in her day-clothes, escorted Shinji silently through the base towards The Commanders' Office.

On the way Shinji wondered if it was what he expected it to be... his father's office. He was Going To See His Father. He swallowed nervously. "Wh-What's going to happen?" Shinji asked.

"I don't know Shinji." Maya replied, trying to keep herself under control in spite of her own nervousness. She didn't' often catch the attention of the brass.

Shinji was shaking his head. It didn't make any sense- he was just coming by to give Asuka some get-well gifts. What was the purpose of coming down on him like this?

...And it wasn't like Asuka didn't want him to keep appearing.

As the elevator raced upward on the final leg Shinji remembered something. He had saved the world. Yesterday, firing the massive gun, he had defeated the Angel. He had saved Rei. He had done these things with little experience. His fist tightened. Surely, he must have some power.

But he would be a mouse standing against a hurricane. This was His Father.

He had to try. For Asuka, he had to.

The door opened, and Shinji stepped out into it. The massive, wide room was unlike anything he had ever seen. The only furnishings Shinji could see was a desk at the far side of the room, and some pillars of... something that were twisting back to the floor. Otherwise, the walls were glass and far away. It was if this office took up the entire floor of the particular building they were in. By the time Shinji was in speaking distance of his father's desk, the other articles of furniture were gone.

Shinji could make out the people in the room now. Doctor Akagi was here, standing in front of the desk. Shinji couldn't make out her expression against the back-glow of the windows. His father was seated in the large chair of the desk, and another man was standing beside his father. His mother, he saw (with hair raising on the back of his neck) was working on a computer at the far end of his father's desk.

It was the first time he had seen both of them since the first day, when he accepted the piloting responsibilities. He swallowed, and balled his fists.

"Shinji." Gendo Ikari said.

Shinji straightened a little bit. "Y-Yes, I'm here."

"You were instructed to leave the Second Child alone." Gendo stated.

The impulse to look away from his father was gone, strangely. This time his fists had been clenched, and he stared at his father. "I-I heard it only when I went to visit her...today. I-I..."

As Shinji faltered, Ritsuko picked up on where Shinji was going. "I think what Shinji is trying to say is that the order was placed after Shinji went to visit the second child."

"Y-Yeah." Shinji replied, swallowing. He straightened up a little and said, "I-I didn't think there would be any problem trying to see a... a colleague... and wishing her well."

Gendo stared at his son over his arms. It was Yui who responded as she worked on her computer at the edge of the table. "Your interaction with the Second Child can have other effects, Shinji. Doctor Zeppelin is trained in special contact procedures- her recommendation is law, in this case."

Shinji, dumbstruck, didn't know what to say. Asuka's mother was-

Gendo was speaking, "The matter of your interaction with the second child has been disruptive to operations here. For the sake of all involved, we will separate you from the second child. We will be assigning you to the care of Captain Katsuragi for oversight and additional training. Doctor, your responsibilities on training Shinji have therefore been relieved."

Ritsuko's mind worked to protest. "Commander." She stated.

Gendo looked at her. "Doctor, we will not hear arguments on this case. The boy will be separated from the second children and placed in the care of Captain Katsuragi, per the medical department's recommendation."

Ritsuko shook her head. "I am forced to remind you of Shinji's falsified medical report before Operation Yashima began. If the Medical Department is going to alter data to serve their whims, it will affect operations. Moreover, the Evangelions cannot be manned by dead pilots, and will take time to reconfigure them for new pilots if you decide to treat them as disposable."

"Doctor." Gendo toned.

Ritsuko winced. "I'm addressing this matter as head of the technical division. If you decide to overlook Kyoko's abuses for the sake of her ego, there will be consequences with our equipment."

Gendo spoke, "That is a matter for Captain Katsuragi and ourselves to decide. The particulars of Operation Yashima are still under investigation. Regardless of that outcome, we have decided to separate the children."

Ritsuko clutched the clipboard she had, tighter. Shinji noticed, and looked up at Ritsuko. He couldn't help feel touched at the passion she showed on his defense.

Fuyutuski stepped forward. "All we want is a resolution of the conflict, Doctor. For the time being, let's separate the children. Both are in need of rest and recuperation after the ordeal yesterday. Additionally, Shinji could use exposure to others. It is a fairly lonely apartment, isn't it Shinji?"

Shinji didn't answer. he looked down. _It was fine when Asuka and I were neighbors._

When he didn't respond, Gendo said, "This cross-departmental feud will not be tolerated. Unless further evidence arises to dispute the Medical Department's findings, Shinji will be placed in the custody of Captain Katsuragi. I advise you to restrain your complaints against Doctor Zeppelin, Doctor Akagi. We do not care about semantics; we want results. The Medical department has performed to our satisfaction and you will need to prove to us that a change is required. If we hear you telling Kyoko how to do her job, we will have to reconsider your position here."

"Understood." Ritsuko replied, sharp and with eyes full of purpose.

Shinji's fists were balled. "C-Can I ask something?"

Yui stopped typing. It was enough for Shinji to raise his head, looking at his father.

"What is it?" Gendo asked.

"R-Respectfully sir," Shinji said, swallowing, "I-I didn't mean to c-cause a problem. I-I just w-wanted to help. I-If..." He looked down, "I-If I do need supervision, couldn't I move in with you? Or mom?"

"We're very busy Shinji." Yui replied.

"I-I won't get in the way." Shinji said, though his tone was defeated.

Gendo hesitated before speaking, "You will move in with Katsuragi. The matter is closed. Dismissed."

Ritsuko turned. Maya gently reached out a hand and put it on Shinji's shoulder. Both women helped Shinji out of the room.

When he was gone, Fuyutuski turned to Gendo. "This matter is going to escalate quite uncomfortably."

"Katsuragi will keep the boy in line." Gendo replied. He eyed Yui, though she did not acknowledge his look.

Fuyutuski shook his head. "I doubt it will be that simple, Ikari. You know what the correct answer is as much as I do, and this is not the way."

Gendo said nothing, but continued to eye the seemingly inattentive Yui.

Fuyutuski sighed. "So be it. I'll be on-hand to clean up the mess once it topples over." He looked at Gendo, "I'll also refrain from reminding you of this conversation."

Gendo was still staring at his wife. Yui never once looked up from her typing during the entire meeting.


	9. Chapter 9: Damage

**IX. DAMAGE**

"Pleased to meet you kid!" Misato said abruptly to Shinji. Her handshake was sudden, jarring, and to Ritsuko's eyes- uncaring. Misato released Shinji and looked rattled by the western-style handshake.

Ritsuko winced, guessing that since their meeting earlier today, Misato may have found a stash of spirits to partake in.

Ritsuko had taken Shinji to meet the Captain, sending Maya on her way (though not without protest). A small argument in the elevator on the way there.

"_We can't just leave Shinji with someone he doesn't know!__"_

_"__Do you have the place to put him up?__ I can't let him live in my office, nor is my apartment much better.__"_

Misato had already turned to Ritsuko. "Now that I got Ikari to take back home with me, I'm gonna call it an early day!" She turned around and started walking off, saying, "At least I can put off all that paperwork..."

Ritsuko toned to Misato, "He has belongings at his current residence you will need to pick up."

"Yah, yah," Misato said with a dismissive wave. "Coming Shinji?"

Ritsuko looked at Shinji. The boy was giving her a look that cried for help. A small spike of anger peaked in Ritsuko.

"Misato." Ritsuko toned.

The Captain stopped and turned around. "What?" Seeing Ritsuko's look, she straightened her posture and toned, "What is it?"

"Don't frighten him." Ritsuko said.

Misato laughed and said, "Look at you, you really are his advocate!"

Ritsuko winced that Misato was being this caviler, "I'm serious. He's already gotten too much from Kyoko, he doesn't need to be tense about his living situation as well."

Misato put her hands on her hips and leaned forward, "It's not like I have tons of knives or mean dogs at my place. Besides," She leaned up, "If he can master Eva, he'll be fine at my place. We'll get to know each other over the weekend!" She turned around, "C'mon! Trains' leaving in two minutes!"

Shinji looked back at Ritsuko. It pained her to look at Shinji, knowing she was going to send him off to Misato's place. Ritsuko knew what it was like.

Ritsuko looked down at Shinji. "Shinji," She said, "No matter what your initial impression is, Captain Katusragi does the best she can with what she's given. I'll see what I can do on my end to overturn Kyoko's mandate."

The words didn't convince him, she knew it. He did a double-take with her before walking off after Misato Katsuragi. After they had gone, she returned to her office and sat at her desk. Work wasn't coming.

She stared directly at that photograph. The many faces in it from the base, many years ago. It was one of the few times her mother had actually been close to her, that day.

Ritsuko stared at Naoko's face in the picture.

"I am not you." She said directly to the photograph, "I'm not going to be, and I never will be."

With that zeal she opened up her computer files and started cross-examining her information on the Evangelion units. She also pulled up technical information on the synchronization systems. She had taken these for granted before, letting Kyoko deal with those particulars.

It was time to get familiar with them, if she was going to spar with Kyoko on their shared territory.

Perhaps... she winced... she might learn a little something more about what happened to the woman.

* * *

Shinji had been accustomed to Fear before, he had plenty of practice in recent days. Nothing could have prepared him for the driving of Misato Katsuragi. As he gripped the handle bar above his head and held on to his leg with the other, images of dying in a flaming car crash played in his mind.

They were driving faster than the speed limit, Misato was blasting through yellow light intersections and swearing when they were stopped. Driving with Misato, Shinji was thinking, was more frantic than Evangelion combat.

They were headed to Shinji's apartment. The address was all he was able to get out of his mouth before they took off on the wild ride. Shinji didn't know how long it took them to get to the apartment, but it felt like an eternity.

"Welp!" Misato piped after they finally stopped, "Here we are!"

Shinji had to take a moment to catch his breath before he shakily left the car and stumbled.

"What a dump!" Misato called, "You really live here? You're going to have an upgrade at my place..." Misato rounded the car to see Shinji hunched over, catching his breath. "Aww come on," She said, crossing her arms, "Don't tell me you've never been on a Roller Coaster before."

Shinji shook his head. His aunt and uncle had tried to make him 'more fun' by taking him to such things, but in the end Shinji hated them even more. It was too much overload. "J-Just give me a sec..."

Misato frowned. Ritsuko's warning came back unbidden to her, but she brushed it out of her mind and brightened up. "Come on," She said, "Let's get your things."

Shinji nodded again and stood up to start walking to the apartment building. His innards froze as he also remembered Asuka's apartment was here too. He hesitated as he started up the steps.

Misato, seeing his look, decided to try cooling the enthusiasm. "Shinji," She said, "I know it's hard for you, but we have orders. Besides, Asuka may have special needs that her mom-"

"I know!" Shinji barked back, pausing on the steps. When he saw Misato's expression his fists balled. "S-Sorry... I-I..." He shook as his frustration was starting to peak over.

Misato, several steps down the stairs, waited and crossed her arms.

Shinji swallowed and started again, "I-I know she has to study. B-But I just wanted to be her friend! Someone my age... you know? S-Somone... like me. A-And I didn't want her to eat crap food when she needed something good to help her study!"

Misato winced. "Wait, are you saying you cooked for her?"

_Crap_. Shinij sighed and turned away. "I-I wanted to..." He just left it at that, not wanting to fill in the blanks. He started up the stairs.

He didn't _want_ to leave this place.

_I wanted __Asuka to visit me__._

When they came to the floor that Shinji and Asuka stared, he looked down the corridor. There was a large pile of boxes waiting by his apartment door.

His things!

Shinji only managed to take five steps towards them before he realized some of the boxes were deformed... as if...

"Shinji don't touch them." Misato called from behind.

The stench got his attention. He covered his mouth. "Ugh..."

Misato had her phone out already and was speaking into it. "Hyuga, Misato. Connect me to the decontamination office, I have something I want to say to them."

Shinji scanned the wall. A large splash of alien blood had hit the side of the building, going across the balcony, hitting the door between his apartment and Asuka's, and running down the length of the building. The entire collection of boxes- his things- had been doused in the stuff. Cardboard boxes were warped and deformed as if heavy water was splashed over them. His Cello case was also there, the outside leather cracked and damaged from drying over the past two days.

This all must have been delivered the day he was called in early to the base. Shinji collapsed on the ground.

Misato was screaming in the phone now. "Who the fuck do you think this is!? Fine, I'll tell you, I'm the woman who writes out all those goddamned damage and cleanup reports! Now if you don't come back here and do your goddamned job PROPERLY I'm gonna have some skins! I need a full decontamination crew here- there are personal items that need to be salvaged. No- No I don't want to hear your bullshit excuses- as far as you're concerned, it's NERV property you'll be cleaning. Got it!? Get over here, Now, or we'll see about making some 'budget cuts' in your direction." She snapped her phone shut and sighed.

Shinji, still staring at the boxes, could make out a sticker pasted across all of them. 'EXPEDIENCY.'

"T-They sent it... direct..." Shinji uttered.

As fast as possible. Everything. So they could be rid of him.

It wasn't enough that he couldn't go back home- now strangers would be combing through his personal belongings, examining them, scrutinizing them, making sure they were either free of contaminants or too corrupt to be saved. Every little thing of his would be included, private or not.

He put his face to his hands. Others were still deciding what was happening to him.

"Shinji," Misato said, putting a hand on his shoulder, "The decontamination crews will be here to clean up your stuff, okay? Whatever they can save they'll ship to my place."

"O-Okay." Shinji said without emotion.

Misato looked at the pile of things as she stood up. She sighed, then said, "Well, at least your things inside should be safe, right?"

Yes. His life up until now in this place was sealed behind that door, presuming any of it didn't leak beyond into his apartment. He wouldn't be completely gone from there but for now... he had no place. No hopes of customizing his living arrangements to his standards... he would be on Misato's schedule, now.

* * *

The car ride was mercifully more sedate than the ride to Shinji's apartment. Nothing was said as they drove across the nearly deserted streets. Shinji was too preoccupied thinking about what shape his life was about to take.

Misato, though, brooded quietly. Barely a day with this kid and he was already giving her attitude when she was trying to do him a favor. Sure, it was sad that bad things were happening to him, but he couldn't stay mopey forever. Even trying to cheer him up wasn't working. And why couldn't Ritsu take him in? Or, God Forbid, his parents?

They arrived at Misato's apartment after a few minutes. "We're here!" She chimed, putting Shinji's dismay aside.

Shinji looked up at the apartment complex. It was a little more welcoming, at least, than the dour and stale apartment complex he had been assigned to. Perhaps this wouldn't be so bad?

He pulled his backpack over his shoulder and followed Misato up the tight stairway to the inside door of the apartment block. "I guess I'll have to get you a key..." Misato mused as she unlocked the door.

Shinji was in the process of taking off his shoes when he noticed Misato had stopped in the doorway. She was staring down at the shoes, before flopping her own off and striding into the apartment. Shinji kept taking his off until he heard a man's voice speaking, "Well, hello beautiful."

"What are you still doing here?" Misato's voice demanded, making Shinji pause. Looking at the collected shoes he noticed a man's pair- obviously larger and sturdier than the array of heels and slippers Misato must have been wearing.

Nobody had told him Misato was living with someone.

"What's the harsh face for?" The man replied, "Besides, I didn't think you'd be home until later."

Shinji slowly rounded the corner and looked into the apartment proper. The sight and smell hit him like a ton of bricks.

The place was a mess. Beer cans were perched almost everywhere, as well as plastic bags and discarded insta-meal trays. There was almost zero counter space anywhere in the house- even the dining room table was occupied with paperwork, coffee cups, and beer cans. The only clean bit of the apartment Shinji could see was the floor.

The stench wasn't as bad as the Angel blood, but he could smell the dried curry and beer immediately.

He looked up and saw the man, who was also now looking up and noticing Shinji. He was familiar... where had Shinji... yes! It was that man, Kaji?

He was wearing a bathrobe and bright pink slippers. He blinked, startled. "Ikari..."

Shinji blinked back.

Misato looked between them. "Don't tell me the two of you met already!"

"It was yesterday." Kaji replied, then looked at Misato, "What is he doing here?"

"He's going to live with us." Misato replied.

Kaji seemed just as shocked as Shinji. "What?"

"What?" Shinji repeated. He didn't think he'd be living with two people.

Misato sighed and crossed her arms. "I don't like it anymore than you guys do, but it's a commandment from on-high. I guess Kyoko's paranoid Shinji will corrupt her daughter by feeding her or something."

Kaji replied, serious, "Why he isn't living with his parents, or Ritsu?" He looked to Shinji, "I heard you and Doctor Akagi were getting along."

"W-We are..." Shinji replied, suddenly wishing Ritsuko could have taken him in instead. Turning his head to the counter he thought he saw _something_ enter one of the beer cans. Immediately his fear-sense went up... was this place infested with bugs?!

Misato replied, "I think Shinji's parents don't want him getting in the way of their work. Seriously they're the most dedicated people on the base next to Kyoko. I guess the entire base thinks I have entirely too much time on my hands for some reason."

Kaji said, "Punishment no doubt for the vacation you took. Anyway, I'll change... now is not the time for this."

Kaji turned and disappeared behind one of the walls, heading to Misato's room.

Shinji haddn't taken a step into the kitchen, too afraid to do so. Misato, turning back to him, laughed nervously and said, "Well... this is the place! Come in!"

Shinji willed his foot to move and he entered the apartment. It reminded him so much of his aunt and uncle's place... the dishevelment, devil-may-care attitude of his uncle. Everything was starting to tug at him.

Misato showed him around. "The bathroom's through there," She pointed to a room just off of the kitchen, "Here's the main living room... and your room will be the second one. I'm using it for storage now, but we can move things."

"O-Okay..." Shinji replied.

Misato stared at him. She was about to speak when Shinji's cell phone buzzed.

It was Maya.

* * *

"I'm Sooo Sorry about today Shinji, it's all my fault. I shouldn't have pushed you into getting those gifts."

Shinji was on the back balcony of Misato's apartment, enjoying the breeze that was blowing by as he spoke to Maya. The sun was already sinking on the horizon.

"I-It's okay." Shinji said.

"No, it's not!" Maya answered, "If i knew she was there I wouldn't have made you go in. Now we're both in trouble and it's because I thought-"

"Maya!" Shinji cut her off, "I'm the one who wanted to visit Asuka! It's my fault, don't blame yourself."

Maya sighed over the phone. "I'm sorry," She said, "I-I... just worry about you. How's Katusragi's place?"

Shinji blinked as he changed gears. "T-There's a man here... I-It's Kaji!"

"Kaji's living there?" Maya replied with surprise, "Well, I suppose that makes sense. I heard she has a two-room place at least... you are getting your own room, right?"

"Yeah." Shinji said as the sun was sinking beneath the mountains. "But I wish I had a place to myself."

"I know." Maya said, then sighed and said, "Orders are Orders, though."

"Yeah..." Shinji replied, then dipped his head, "I-I just don't want to feel like a problem."

"I'm sure you're not a problem for Captain Katsuragi."

"Even with her boyfriend living here?"

Maya was quiet.

"S-See...?" Shinji said.

Maya was quiet again over the phone again, then said, "I can see where you're coming from Shinji. Is there anything I can do?"

Shinji looked up at the horizon. The stars were coming out. The sky was a lovely color of purple, shifting to gold as it followed the retreating sun. It was kind of pretty out, in spite of the lights from Tokyo-3.

"N-No..." Shinji replied, "I... I don't think so."

"I'm sorry Shinji." Maya said. "If there's ANYTHING you can think of, anything at all, just give me a call, okay!"

"Okay." Shinji replied, "Bye..."

He could almost hear Maya's disappointment as she hung up. He looked at his phone, and a thought hit him.

He scrolled down to the other person he knew he could talk to, and dialed her number.

* * *

At the end of the call Shinji closed his phone and turned around. Misato wasn't doing a convincing job of showing she didn't eavesdrop on the entire call, and Shinji walked to the glass door and opened it.

"So ah," Misato said with a grin, turning around, "Did you...have a good phone call?"

Shinji closed the glass door. "You can drop the act, Captain."

"Please! Call me Misato! Who were you chatting with, your girlfriend?"

Shinji's fists tightened. "Captain Katsuragi-"

Misato's demeanor changed suddenly. "Look, I've been trying to be nice to you, impress you, and welcome you into my home. The least you can do is show a little gratitude for it!"

Shinji's fist tightened harder and he closed his eyes. "I-I don't want to impose on you and mister Kaji!"

"You aren't Imposing!"

"Yes I am!" Shinji replied, staring at Misato now. "Don't lie... just like my aunt and uncle, my parents are dropping me in on your lives and you have to make room for me." He looked away and added under his breath, "Well, I didn't want to be here either."

"Oh-kay." Misato uttered slowly, anger in her tone, "If you don't like it, I can stick you in the closet you little sh-"

At once Shinji realized, he had hit rock bottom. He was not welcome anywhere, certainly not here. There was only one thing he could do.

He ran.

Before Misato could react Shinji bolted for the door. Misato swung out a hand to catch him but missed. The phone flew out of Shinji's hands as he reached down to grab his shoes, and fled the apartment.

"Shinji... SHINJI!" Misato screamed behind him. Shinji just quickened his pace, tears forming in his eyes as all the frustration... all the upset... of the past few days just welled up in him.

The people who cared for him were not here. He would have to find them.

But he might just get sent back here, in the end.

Shinji kept running as he made it down the stairs, taking off into the young night. Behind him, up on her flight of stairs, Misato screamed down, "FINE! BE THAT WAY!"

Kaji, by the door, reached down to pick up Shinji's cell phone.

* * *

She had stepped around the hoses leading up to the decontamination crews and entered her apartment. Once the door was closed behind her she was left in the dark, alone. She took a deep breath and exhaled. She was alone.

The dwelling wasn't much... One room. One Kitchen. One Shower. To her though, this was everything. Peace, serenity, and self-destiny away from her mother. The only master here was herself.

Asuka kicked off her shoes, and then staggered across the carpet that ran from the entry into the main living area. Dropping the pack containing her books by the bed, she reached across it and found the desk lamp that was beside her bed and turned it on. After this, she collapsed on the bed and rolled upward to look at the very comforting ceiling and the feeling of security and sovereignty there.

But she felt horrible.

She turned away from the refrigerator in the kitchen, groping for the covers and pushing them down her body to loop them again over her legs. Shivering at how cold the bed was, she waited for her body heat to warm them up and get her away from all this. She closed her eyes.

Shinji's smiling face, presenting dinner to her, came unbidden to her mind. Her brain re-played the events of that evening for her as she lay there. She had no choice, no other memory to thrust in the way. She was too tired.

Another memory rose to attack her. It was the instant her mother slammed the door, kicking aside the bouquet of flowers that Shinji had dropped as she walked back to Asuka. "Open your mouth." She commanded to resume the examination that was interrupted.

Asuka complied. When her mother moved to enter data on the computer, Asuka asked, "What will happen to Ikari?"

"No concern of yours." Kyoko replied, "If he will not abide restrictions then he will be eliminated. NERV will not spare any resources for redundant material."

_ Redundant material_. It was difficult to think of Shinji as being mere _parts_, but for her mother to phrase it that way...

She could have gone under supervision instead.

Asuka tried to blot that thought out of her mind immediately, but it festered. After all, _she_ was the one to let Shinji into the apartment in the first place. _She_ dared show friendship to Shinji, after discovering there was someone like her on the base now... unlike Rei, it was someone with spirit.

And she had betrayed him. Sitting in this room was a betrayal, that his freedom was taken while hers was preserved.

But... she thought, as her fingers tightened against the skin of her face... what choice did she have? It was her, or him.

But...

Shinji didn't have to cook for her.

_ "I understand what it's like. My parents, they are the same way."_

The memory of sitting in the entry plug, playing the memory of Shinji's visit through her head, came back to her. It hurt all the more realizing now that he wouldn't be allowed to see her again casually... for perhaps... the rest of their time on the base.

Asuka just allowed the tears to flow. As she began weeping a part of her- the unemotional part dedicated to studies- noted that she wouldn't be needed for a few hours. She could cry.

She leaned into it, weeping to the cold, quiet room that was all her own.


	10. Chapter 10: Night

**X. - Night**

Ritsuko suddenly stopped running her hand across her cheek. "You did what?"

Misato sighed into the phone. "Well, he was being a little shit all day! Back-talking me and being aloof. Anyway, he was whining about imposing on Kaji and I when-"

"_Kaji?_" Ritsuko blasted, "_Kaji_ is living at your place?"

Misato was quiet on the other end before she went on, "Well.. he wanted to move in! That's... what part of the vacation was about."

Ritsuko lifted the phone away from her face to groan loudly. She was alone in her office.

"I heard that."Misato said through the phone.

Ritsuko didn't say anything for a moment, before speaking into the phone, "I should have known."

"What is that supposed to mean?" Misato replied.

Ritsuko leaned backward in her chair and stared upward as she replied, "Shinji is a sensitive _teenager_. I imagine he felt pretty awkward about invading the love nest your building with Kaji. On top of this," She spun a little in her chair, "He's rejected by his parents, lost his home, assaulted by Kyoko, lost one of the friends he was close to here, and through no fault of his own, had his possessions ruined. All this in reward for saving all of our lives yesterday."

When Misato didn't reply right away, Ritsuko twisted the knife. "And if I were to rate your first impression-"

"All right all right!" Misato replied, "Shit, so I'm a bad surrogate mom. What do you want from me?"

"Some compassion," Ritsuko said, "with what he's dealing with. And maybe letting down your barriers a little to someone other than Kaji and myself for once. He's hurting. He needs someone who can be gentle with him while he adjusts, not someone to claw him out of his shell."

Misato was quiet again for a moment, then said in an accusing tone, "Ok. So why couldn't you or Ibuki take him?"

"We weren't even consulted." Ritsuko replied, "It was a direct order from the Ikaris, and you were their chosen one. Either they or Kyoko made the recommendation, and I can't even begin to speculate who it was." Ritsuko leaned back again and thought for a moment. "I suppose it doesn't matter."

Turning in the chair again, Ritusko said, "If he had arrived months earlier, before the Angel attacks, Kaji wouldn't have been here. I would have been busy with repairs to Evangelion 00, and you would have met him here at the station, brought him here, and prepared him for what he was about to face."

Misato added, "Or if that bitch had stayed in Germany and just sent her daughter, instead of pushing out here with her as if she had something to prove."

Ritsuko nodded, "She's does. That's why all of this is happening. Which leaves us in the current predicament." Ritsuko said. "Shinji doesn't need direct supervision- he will do as he is told if you explain the situation to him because he has a good sense of responsibility. Based on my technical understanding of Evangelion operations, Asuka's problem with synchronizing to the Evangelion don't come from him. If anything, her scores have _improved_ since he's been here, as much as they can while her mother is supervising all of her tests."

"Why can't you just take that to the Ikaris?" Misato replied.

Ritsuko shook her head. "I need more concrete data on Asuka's synchronization scores before I can submit any kind of hypothesis to the Ikaris. They want something backed up with hard evidence, not more tit-for-tat hearsay skirmishes between Kyoko and me. In any case, we need to think about Shinji. Tell me again exactly what happened."

Ritsuko listened carefully to the tale Misato told her. After letting it sink in with a grain of salt, she asked, "So what are you doing about it?"

"Kaji is driving around, looking for him. I wasn't sure to call section two-"

"Don't." Ritsuko replied suddenly, "If Kyoko gets wind of this she'll likely use it to further abuse Shinji- to say nothing about how he'll be handled."

Misato paused on the other end before saying, "He did drop his phone."

* * *

The house was lit again after a couple of days of dormancy.

The first thing the residents did was to check the doors- make sure everything was intact. Good, no looters had stopped by the place during the Angel Attack. After that they re-started the gas, then resumed their lives in their house.

The next thing was to check messages. "Hikari!" The eldest sister called from downstairs.

Hikari Horaki descended. "What is it?"

Kodama was holding the house phone. "I think you need to hear this last message. Someone wanted to talk to you."

Hikari's mind instantly jumped to Shinji and their last conversation. Without another word she hurried down the steps and reached a hand out to take the phone from Kodama. Pressing it up to her ear, she hit the playback button of the answering machine.

"One. You have One Old Message." The computer voice said.

Hikari's eyes widened a little as Shinji's voice spoke to her.

"H-Hi Hiakri It's Shinji... I hope you don't mind me C-calling you suddenly... I wish I could talk to you right now... you're not there, are you?"

Hikari cradled the phone closer to her ear as she listened. "All right well... it's a long story, but I've been kicked out of my apartment. My parents are making me move in with some woman I don't even know, and she's living with a guy already and the place is trashed. I-It's like I'm moving back in with my aunt and uncle again..."

Hikari could hear the descent in his tone. Her heart was going out to Shinji.

"I-I really don't want to be here. I was looking forward to living at my apartment and maybe inviting you over someday to help decorate. N-Now I'm with some strange woman whose going to be watching me and setting my bedtime and..." He sighed. "I-I'm sorry I left a long message. I want to talk to you about what's going on b-because I don't know who else to reach out to. I don't have a lot of other friends my age here. I-I hope I can... can see you next week." He ended with a sigh, likely realizing that tomorrow was the weekend. They had no cause to see one another, then.

Another pause.

"Bye..." He hung up.

Hikari lowered the phone before she could hear the computer saying the message had ended.

* * *

Ritsuko was leaving Misato's apartment with Shinji's phone in hand when it buzzed. Puzzled, she lifted it to look at the number that it was calling from. H. HORAKI. She answered it. "Hello?"

The voice paused on the other end. "U-Um... I-Is Shinji there?"

"I'm sorry," Ritsuko said, "This is Doctor Akagi from NERV. I have Shinji's phone, do you know where he might be?"

"N-Nerv?" Hikari replied, hesitantly on the other end, "Is Shinji in trouble?"

"Not yet." Ritsuko replied, "But he's been missing since sundown. May I ask who you are?"

The girl replied, "Hikari Horaki, class representative Room 16-A. Tokyo-3 junior high school. Shinji... Shinji is my friend."

Ritsuko couldn't help smiling. "I'm glad he felt he could call you. We think Shinji is in a lot of pain right now and we don't know where he is."

"C-Can I help you look for him?" Hikari asked, earnestly.

"No," Ritsuko replied, "I don't think that's necessary. Does he know where you live?"

"No." Hikari replied, "I've only seen him in class."

"I see." Ritsuko said as she approached the car. "Miss Horaki, if you get any more information about his whereabouts, call this cell phone. We're as anxious to hear from him as you are."

Hikari replied, "If you find him, can I talk to him? Please?"

"I can promise you that." Ritsuko replied, "Thank you, miss Horaki."

"Mn." Replied the girl on the other line before it hung up.

Ritsuko closed the phone. The door was already open for her, she slipped into the back seat of the yellow BMW bug behind Shigeru.

"Well," the man said, "At least it's not just the three of us."

Maya was in the passenger's seat beside Shigeru. "Are you sure we can't just call section two?"

Ritsuko closed the door. "I want to keep this as discreet as possible, for as long as possible. I don't want Kyoko having any more leverage over the situation than she already has, for Shinji's sake."

The car started driving away from Misato's apartment and into the night of Tokyo-3.

"I don't get it," Shigeru said, "I thought Captain Katsuragi was a fun person to be around when she's off-duty. I thought he'd love a chance to move in with a babe like her."

Maya poked him in the leg after grunting disapprovingly.

Ritsuko smiled from the back seat. "You haven't been inside her apartment. Let's just say the Captain puts up a very extravagant front. At any rate, Shinji no doubt has plenty of motivation to run off given the pressure he's under. He was attacked by Kyoko, for one."

"What?" Shigeru exclaimed, "Really?"  
"I was there." Maya added softly.

Ritsuko leaned her head back against the headrest. "Add these compulsions to move, his personal belongings were ruined... he's had many things to be stressed about. When Captain Katsuragi snapped at him, it must have been the last straw."

* * *

Shinji felt ashamed.

Of course he was embarrassed as well, fleeing Misato's apartment as he did. She was right, after all, he was being ungrateful. At the moment though, he didn't care. His mind was too muddled in thinking that he was being displaced...again... and that he had no choice in his future. The dull, empty feeling of depression was sitting in his gut and face and refused to let him do the decent thing. He grunted as he walked.

Even if Evangelion piloting had not been bad... even if his parents treated him coldly and distantly... being pushed out of his dwelling and given to someone else was the last straw. Not only was he denied his autonomy, but he was simultaneously under a new person's supervision _and_ being a burden.

He was dumped on others yet again, because his parents couldn't (or wouldn't) take him. He sighed angrily, wishing this occurred to him when he was in front of his parents. It was an accusation that might have given him some leverage if he threw it...

No. Maybe they wouldn't have cared. It would be just like it was before.

The night air was cold on his skin, though fortunately a few shops were open when he had fled Misato's place. He ducked inside of one of them and bought a heavy, hooded Tokyo-3 sweater before wandering back out into the night. At least his company card wasn't shut down- he might not be in serious trouble yet.

Shinji didn't want to think of that eventuality... he had no plan for anything if he should be evicted from Tokyo-3 entirely. He wondered how valuable his ability to pilot Evangelion was... and wondered what limit he'd have to push in order to forfeit that advantage.

Shinji sighed a cloud out of his mouth. He'd worry about that later, right now he wanted to be by himself and sort things out for a while. Patting his pocket he grunted... he had dropped his phone. He still wanted to talk to Hikari.

Doctor Akagi and Maya he knew were friends, but they would tell him again what he had heard from Misato: orders were orders. Unless he could convince his father to change his mind, this is how things would be. Shinji dipped his head.

At least he felt okay talking to Hikari. She wasn't connected with NERV, and was probably the only friend he had right now who didn't answer to the masters that put him in this predicament.

He missed his SDAT player, too. Music would have given him comfort, framework, and distraction while he did the thinking he needed to do. He kept walking, headed north with the hopes that maybe he'd hit the school. If he were lucky he might find a way to wait out the night and attend class next day to talk to Hikari.

He stopped. It was Friday, school wouldn't be happening on the weekend.

He sighed in defeat and just kept walking. He'd figure out something... worse comes to worse he'd hang his head and just walk back to Misato's place. Or he'd find a way back into the base and make his way to the cages. After all, if Evangelion piloting was his purpose, then the Cages... the Cages... was where he would be.

All that would wait. For now, he just wanted to walk away. His body was telling him his feet would take him someplace new... someplace _different_. Then, he would be away from what was making him depressed.

* * *

Downtown was a mess. As Shinji walked he could see lights to the west, and occasionally the stench of alien blood touched his nose. Coming to one particular intersection, he looked down the long rows of buildings and could see a line of people beside a roadblock. Taken by curiosity, he approached the gathering of people, throwing up his hood to cover his head.

From what he could see it appeared that cleanup operations were very involved downtown. There was a low rumble that dominated the sky as he got to the edge of the picket line where returned citizens were gawking. He saw a huge pump on a multi-axel truck, and he could also make out several other chemical trucks parked around it. What were they doing, pumping all that angel blood? Were they going to dispose of it?

Seeing all that there was to see he started off again, heading away from the picket line and to the north-east.

* * *

Kaji's voice sounded like it came through a metal can. "I've been driving around the block, ducking into stores, and I still haven't seen him."

His voice rang from speaker phone in the cab of the BMW as Shigeru continued driving. Maya had her laptop open and was tapping on it, accessing the city's wifi.

"I see." Ritsuko replied. She looked at a map of Tokyo-3 and tried to judge where he was in relation to the current location of the BMW.

Kaji added, "It's partially my fault it happened. I had no idea what was going on at the base today, other issues."

Ritsuko wondered what he meant by that. "Thank you for your help," She finally said, "We'll be searching the north side of the city next."

Kaji asked, "Do you think he would have left the city?"

Shigeru looked in the rear-view mirror at Ritsuko, and Maya stopped typing as she pondered the thought.

Ritsuko shook her head. "Let's presume he hasn't and keep searching."

"Understood." Kaji replied.

Ritsuko clicked the phone off and rested her head against the back headrest again.

Maya asked, "S-Senpai, why don't you think Shinji would leave the city?"

"He has nowhere left to go." Ritsuko replied, "Besides, my gut tells me he wouldn't have left."

As Ritsuko held her phone and Shinji's, she asked herself what brought her to that conclusion. Wincing, she realized, she couldn't. It was intuition.

Maternal intuition?

Ritsuko winced.

* * *

Though the people were starting to return to Tokyo-3, the inner areas were still abandoned and vacant. Dodging radiation teams and coned-off areas, SShinji got to survey the handiwork of the job he performed yesterday.

The hulk of the Angel's dead body was draped across the center of town.

He had spent a moment staring at the body of the thing from his vantage point to the east of the corpse. He had to pull himself away before long- this wasn't doing him any good. It was reminding him that for his efforts yesterday, he was essentially an exile.

It was odd, though, to travel between the large office blocks without anyone present. Interior lights blared outward to no-one, and the streetlights were illuminating empty pavement beneath them. The occasional car would pass by, and Shinji walked out of his way to avoid anyone else, as he made his way north.

After several intersections of silence, he came across a map and the sound of a distant decontamination team. As he stopped to look at the map a trio of vans drove by with the markings of NERV on them. They didn't stop at all, passing by on their business, though Shinji half-expected them to burn rubber turning and blast spotlights on him like in those crime-pursuit TV shows. While he wasn't disappointed that they hadn't, it felt surreal that he was not important enough to be recognized on sight.

...Realizing he was wallowing in that self pity made him feel even worse.

He had no idea where he had come from or where he was going, but at least there was a YOU ARE HERE sticker on part of the map he studied. With a finger he traced a possible route to the east of the city and north again. The Middle School was tucked in the northeastern hills of the city. It was still the only destination he could think of.

Shinji started east again.

* * *

Ritsuko waited patiently in the BMW with Maya's laptop when Shigeru and Maya returned.

Maya was speaking as she jumped into the front seat, "One of the cashiers at Grace Brothers thought they saw a boy matching Shinji's description."

They started belting in again as Shigeru started up the car.

Ritsuko spoke up, "It probably was. I pulled up the last transactions on Shinji's company card. He bought a sweater there."

"Yes," Shigeru said as he pulled out of the parking space, "Hooded sweater, Tokyo-3 branding, grey-blue."

Maya sighed as she looked out the window. "He plans to be out all night doesn't he?"

"Maybe." Ritsuko said and sighed, "It's been a long time since I've been a teenager. This would be a lot easier if we knew what was on his mind."

"Maybe he went back to his old apartment? Shigeru suggested.

Ritsuko looked at the map of Tokyo-3. The apartment complexes were south-west of their location and the store... perhaps Shinji double-backed and headed there?

"It's worth a try." Ritusko said, "Let's go."

* * *

The city of Tokyo-03 started to thin out as he headed east, but the abandonment did not. As he left the central metropolis and wandered into the eastern part of the city, the city buildings became less organized, polished, and advanced. Others were starting to show signs of real abandonment outside of the mandatory evacuation.

The street lights were also getting more sparse, and for a moment Shinji wondered how he would defend himself from looters if any showed up. They could take his wallet, his key-card and pass to the apartment complex, but that was really all that he had of value on him unless someone prized pens and backpacks.

The wind picked up a little and the trees waved at him in the darkness. Before he knew it, he was on a road beside a long field of tall grasses waving silently in the moonlight. He looked north, seeing some buildings and the hills that were his destination beyond. He looked back to the west.

He could see his apartment complex.

Stopping for a moment he considered going "back home", to a place he was forbidden from staying. While he wasn't technically in Asuka's presence, it would probably be close enough to get him into deeper trouble than he could be now.

Though, how could he relax at home if the decontamination team was still there and ready to stop him?

He also didn't have the heart to see his things strewn about and investigated.

Instead he continued along the road towards the distant buildings, passing more and more offices on his left with abandoned cars in front of them. How many people had been here when the city was abandoned? And when would they return?

A commuter bus was abandoned at a stop, the lights still blinking silently and the doors still open. Shinji hesitated as he tried to think of when the evacuation notice happened yesterday, and how long it had been since he heard the people had returned. Shrugging, Shinji climbed inside and walked through it, before leaving the bus and continuing on his journey.

The eerie feeling of being alone in the world, so easily felt here, was intoxicating. To be in a world where nobody could hurt you… what a feeling. No concern for parents or others, no need to wonder what their opinions were and what they could do to him… it was a strange, liberating kind of feeling.

He stopped at another intersection to look around, then looked up in the sky. The moon was starting to fall on the horizon, the full orb was painting the ground in dull white. It tinged the edges of the buildings, brightening the skyline with a romantic tinge.

Shinji felt a strange sense of Deja vu, and for a moment he wondered where on earth he could have felt this kind of empty, lonely sensation before. Unable to find it, he turned and started walking north.

* * *

The doorbell made her shudder. "Uhn…" Asuka muttered, before sitting up in the dusky lamp-lit room. She rubbed her eyes.

Realizing that she had fallen asleep, she heard the doorbell again and immediately duty and responsibility came to her brain. After all, it could be Her Mother. The fact that it was nearly 10 o'clock at night meant it was really important. Asuka left her bed and walked through the kitchenette to the doorway and then peeked into the peep-hole.

Surprised, she opened the door. "Doctor Akagi, what can I do for you?"

Ritsuko glanced beyond Asuka into the apartment. Not seeing what she wanted to see, she blinked and looked down at Asuka with a crestfallen look. "I'm sorry to bother you. I wanted to know if perhaps Shinji snuck back here."

"Shinji?" Asuka blinked, suddenly remembering his expression at the recovery ward and the fact that….

She whitened a little, feeling it in her face.

Ritsuko blinked and said softly, "Shinji has been missing for nearly two hours now and we don't know where he could be. He dropped his phone, and we've been searching for him on foot."

"Section two can't find him?" Asuka asked quietly. Section Two was able to find her in the past.

Ritsuko closed her eyes. "We've decided not to inform them just yet. We think Shinji just needs someone to talk to…" She opened her eyes and looked down at Asuka, "I do not want to solicit NERV official involvement since Shinji hasn't directly violated orders… at least yet."

Seeing Asuka's weary stare into space, Ritsuko asked, "Are you all right?"

There was a pause before Asuka recovered. "No!" She suddenly quipped, "No I'm fine… just tired." She rubbed an eye, "Still recovering."

Ritsuko nodded. She hesitated a moment, and asked, "Do you feel Shinji was a distraction?"

Asuka suddenly looked up at that odd question. "What?"

Ritsuko leaned against the doorframe while she prepared to deliver her pitch to Asuka. "Your mother's case for evicting Shinji from his apartment is because she's determined, medically, that he's influencing your synchronization scores and Evangelion performance in a negative way. Whether or not this is true, your mother also tampered with a medical test before he sortied yesterday to save all of our lives, in order to make him look unfit and put you in Evangelion 01 for the operation."

Asuka took all of this in and reeled. She wasn't surprised, though, that her mother would have gone to such lengths. But to know that she, Asuka, had some say in Shinji's fate... even indirectly... she shook her head. "I... I'm not surprised..."

Ritsuko stared at Asuka. "The only way I can overturn this is with independent tests to somehow prove that there is no negative influence. I'll be approaching this from a technical angle...however..." She blinked, "I could use your help."

Asuka looked into space again, mulling over what she wanted…. What she had to say. "He was never a problem," she said in official tones, "But Pilot Ikari has influenced my piloting ability and studies."

"In a negative way?"

Asuka looked up. "No. Certainly not."

Ritsuko nodded a little again. "Good. In the coming days I might need your help again to build a case to submit to Shinji's parents and get this thing lifted. In the meantime..." She blinked and her expression softened, "In the meantime, take care of yourself Asuka. We know you're suffering."

Asuka said nothing.

Ritsuko turned. "If you hear anything about Shinji's whereabouts, call me directly. I want to resolve this without him getting into more trouble than he already is."

Asuka nodded a little. "I understand Doctor. Good luck."

"Thank you." Ritsuko replied and started walking away toward the stairs.

Asuka closed the door and took a few steps away from the door, standing beside the refrigerator and holding one arm with her hand folded across her middle. She glanced at the fridge, which still held the leftovers from Shinji that night.

If... if she helped Doctor Akagi... it would mean going against her mother.

The only time she did that, she lost. And she was made to regret it.

* * *

Shinji didn't think it was possible, but there it was. An abandoned building in Tokyo-03.

It was surrounded by a chain-link fence, marked with signs saying KEEP OUT, and coated with obvious signs of entropy. Strangely, there was no graffiti on the outside that he would have expected, though the grass was dead and some of the windows were cracked. Shinji stopped to stare at it for a while and wondered what this building was meant to do. The building looked official, at least, square and imposing with rectangular windows. An alcove contained a pair of glass doors that had been papered over. Wincing, Shinji read the thin black characters over the top of the building's entrance, "Artificial Evolution Laboratory…"

He read the sign on the chain link fence, claiming it was private property of NERV and trespassers would be punished. Didn't say with what, however.

Shinji was about to turn and go when he heard something. Stopping to listen, at first he heard only the wind in the sky. But then he heard it again- the sound of footsteps. Shinji started at a walk away from the abandoned structure, the chain-link blurring as he moved by it. But then he heard footsteps again- closer this time, which made Shinji increase his pace. As they got louder he broke into a run-

-colliding with someone at the corner of the chain link fence. Shinji fell, the other person staggered, and Shinji rolled on the ground to get back up. "Ikari!" The other person said.

Shinji, panting and confused, blinked as he looked up into the stranger's dark form illuminated by a street lamp. Shinji stared at the boy for a moment, raising a hand to shield the lamp from his vision. "Wh-Who are you?" Shinji asked.

The other person pulled off a gas mask to reveal a familiar face. It was the classmate from a few days ago, the one who had been swinging the airplane around. "Kensuke Aida, from class. What are you doing here?"

Shinji blinked, then started to stand, "What are YOU doing here?"

* * *

Hikari hadn't been far from her phone. Even as she performed her bedtime routine, the fact that Shinji was... missing... bothered her. More than it should.

She told herself maybe it was because, as class rep, she was just as responsible for Ikari as any other student. However, Shinji wasn't the first one to go up and AWOL on her- plenty of students had done that.

_Something's wrong_, she ended up telling herself. That was the reason. It wasn't the content of his voicemail as much as it was his tone... He was a nice guy. To see him hurting like this...

Her phone was open before she realized what she was doing. She paused at Shinji's number, remembering the time they exchanged it. How she said she'd help him study for the homework over the weekend.

If... if he was found, she needed to reach out to him. Not just because he was another student, but because... because he was a friend.

Hikari snapped the phone closed and stared at it. It was night outside, her lamp-light was on. She needed to get some sleep to recover from a week of waking up early. She had to get some sleep.

A moment later the dial tone from her phone was ringing in her ear.

"Hello Miss Hoarki." Doctor Akagi's voice said.

Hikari was a little disappointed Shinji hadn't recovered his phone yet. "D-Doctor Akagi... I-I haven't heard from Shinji but... I wanted to call to see if you had."

"Not yet." Ritsuko replied, "We're still searching."

Hikari glanced at the clock. "It's getting late though... A-Are you sure I can't help? T-There's no school tomorrow after all."

Ritsuko paused on the other end before saying, "I don't know if another set of eyes would really help, unless you can think of a place he may have gone."

Hikari gripped the phone. "No... no I can't." She didn't know Shinji _that_ well. Maybe she should.

"I'm sorry miss Horaki, but I don't think you joining us could help, and you should not be out this late anyway. The best way you can help Shinji right now is stay alert to see if he contacts you, and then let us know right away when he does."

"Okay." Hikari replied, a little crestfallen. "Thank you Doctor."

She hung up, reached over, and turned off the light. Then she turned as she sat on her bed and stared out the open window out at Tokyo-3.

Why was she getting wrapped up about a boy she had only met a few days ago?

Hikari sighed and looked down at her phone. Normally she'd put the thing away on her dresser- afraid that microwaves were slowly melting her brain if she had it within a foot of her head. Tonight though, she just set it on the dresser beside her bed. She grabbed one of her stuffed animals and hugged it to her chest as she settled into bed. Perhaps sleep would come... after all, Shinji was just a boy in her class.

* * *

Without anything better to do, Shinji couldn't find an excuse to deny hanging out with Kensuke. Besides, once he heard what Kensuke did out here he had to admit to himself his curiosity was piqued. "Urb-exing?"

"Urban exploring." Kensuke replied as the two of them sat on the ground, just out of the direct spotlight of the street light. He had unscrewed his canteen and was taking a swing. Replacing it, he said, "I do this all the time, they never catch me. Tokyo-3's littered with all kinds of abandoned and closed-off areas that they don't patrol that closely. And I like exploring. Sometimes... sometimes I can convince Touji to come with me. But not all the time, he gets bored."

Shinji blinked as he remembered this boy was Suzuhara's friend. Shinji was second-guessing staying in that case... but... but Kensuke seemed okay.

Kensuke thumbed back at the building. "That there is the only remaining administration complex buildings of the Hakone Artificial Evolutionary labs. The rest were torn down when they built Tokyo-3. I've been trying to figure out why. I've already been inside- no cameras or anything. I came out for some water when I saw you under the street lamp."

Shinji reflexively pulled the hood over his head.

Kensuke blinked. "You run away from home or something?"

"H-How did you know?" Shinji asked.

Kensuke didn't reply immediately, but finally answered, "Touji used to do it a lot, coming over to my place and hiding out from his dad. That... stopped when his sister got hurt." Kensuke stared in the distance a little before he perked up, "Anyway! Now that you're here let's go check this thing out. I could use a hand exploring the place."

Shinji blinked. His itinerary for the evening (such as it was), only included moody introspection in the night and finding a place to sleep. Now he would be trespassing. Before he could protest, Kensuke was handing him a mask. "Here, put this on!"

Shinji did as instructed. "Why do I need this?"

"Buildings this old used asbestos for insulation." Kensuke replied, holding his without putting it on yet, "And I wouldn't trust these buildings in the shape they're in. They were made before you were even born!"

A thought hit Shinji.

If his parents had been working here all this time, perhaps there was some record of his parent's activities here...

Perhaps... he could find out why he was abandoned.

Shinji put the mask on.

Kensuke grabbed his large duffel bag and hid it under a bush before handing Shinji a pair of gloves and a flashlight of his own and beckoning Shinji to follow. The boys rounded the far side of the fence-gate, crashing through some bushes, and came to a hole in the fence. Kensuke pushed through hole, rattling it a little, and held it open on the other side for Shinji to crawl through.

Both boys, once clear of the fence, advanced on the building with their flashlights off. In the darkness Shinji could barely see Kensuke gesturing to a concrete depression with stairs, leading down to a door. "It's unlocked." Kensuke said.

Shinji swallowed and followed Kensuke, hoping this wouldn't get him in even deeper trouble than he was already.

* * *

The basement corridor Shinji walked into was empty, predictably. Only a couple of cardboard boxes with nothing in them were on the dusty floors. A few pipes ran overhead, Shinji couldn't make out the serial numbers along the side.

Now that they were inside, Kensuke's flashlight swept the walls. He was talking, "My dad says this was the records and administration building for the Artificial Evolution Lab that was here. When they reorganized into NERV and moved underground, they closed this up. I guess there are some records they kept here, or something? I don't expect to see any experimental stuff here, but it's pretty neat to check out."

Shinji nodded passively. They were approaching the far end of the corridor, which lead into a small space that had a few metal doors branching off. A stairway went up. Shinji's light swept up it, but Kensuke grabbed it and pointed it back down. "Don't aim your light up, you don't know who'll see it outside. Keep it pointed at the ground. And not everything was moved out, you don't want to trip."

Shinji did as he was told.

Kensuke looked at the doors. He reached up and tried the handles. "Locked, and I'm gonna guess you need a key we don't have to open these. Let's go upstairs."

Shinji nodded and followed. They came up to another doorway which was already open. They stepped out into what must have been a main lobby. As the lights swept the floor they played across the large logo that was built into the tile.

Shinji walked around it and stopped to read it. "GEHIRN." It sounded German. If he ever saw Asuka again, perhaps he could ask her what it meant.

"It's the organization that ran this place." Kensuke said, "All I know is that they were managing the campus, I don't know what they were trying to do. That's part of the reason I wanted to snoop around here."

Kensuke gestured to one of the open hallways. The two of them proceeded down it carefully, stepping around more stacked boxes and inspecting the doors. Nameplates were on all of them.

"All of these are unlocked." Kensuke observed.

Shinji stopped at once office as he read the nameplate. On reflex he stepped forward immediately and opened it.

The office was empty, but not completely bare. A desk was still here with the chair placed upside-down on it. Bookcases were along the back wall with some thick books still in them. Shinji stepped further inside.

There was a dull illumination from the street light through the frosted glass of the windows- they were opaque with age and neglect, but the dim light cast a feeling on Shinji that made him shivers. This… this was his father's office. From a time before Shinji was born. Stopping he shined the light everywhere except on the window, playing around empty bookcases and dark monitors.

Even though there was nothing here for him to find, Shinji felt like he wanted to look anyway. He walked to another spot in the desolate office, ignoring the floating dust and dust bunnies as he made his way behind the desk. His light played across the floor when he stopped at something face down under the desk. Stooping down he picked it up.

"Shinji!" Kensuke hissed as he approached. Shinji hadn't heard Kensuke follow him in. "Put that down!"

Shinji had already turned the photograph around and was looking at it. What he saw stunned him."Moma..."

Kensuke hesitated. "Moma?" He bent down next to Shinji and shone his flashlight on it also. Shinji bent it for Kensuke to take a look, and the two boys studied the photograph.

Shinji stared at his mother and father in the photograph. They were in front of this very building, many of them smiling and happy. His father's grin wasn't as wide as the others... but... he seemed happy. His hand was behind his mother's back as her smile beamed outwardly.

There were other people Shinji identified. "That's Doctor Akagi..." Shinji realized, he could make out her face. But her hair was darker... then? "Who is she next to?"

"Her mom probably." Kensuke said, still hung up on Shinji's earlier statement, "Is your mom in the center of the picture?"

"Yeah..." Shinji replied as he studied the picture for other faces. "That's Doctor Zeppelin."

She was also uncharacteristically smiling, but also significantly younger. He was puzzled- he had never seen her this happy.

"Who?"

"Asuka's mom." Shinji clarified.

Kensuke looked at him. "...Who?"

"Never mind." Shinji replied. He recognized a few more faces- one standing just off his mother's shoulder was the same man that stood next to his father during... the confrontation. When he was reassigned to live with Misato.

Shinji's eyes went back to his father. Without the beard and sunglasses, his father resembled an older version of how he looked now. Shinji shuddered.

He started to stand with the photo but Kensuke reached out again. "Nah-ah, leave it. We leave nothing but footprints, and take nothing but memories."

"I need to keep this." Shinji replied.

"And I don't want to get in trouble and diced up for letting you steal stuff! Trespassing is enough." Kensuke said. He fumbled on his belt. "Tell you what," He said, "Hold the light."

Shinji waited as Kensuke pulled out a durable-looking cell phone. Angling it, he snapped a picture. "There." He said and rotated the phone to tap in it, "What's your number?"

"N-No." Shinji replied, "I-I dropped my cell phone at home. I don't want... don't want them to find out where I am."

Kensuke stared at Shinji for a moment. "Smart. Ok, I'll hold onto it and get it to you sometime, okay?"

"Okay." Shinji said and stared back at the picture for another moment more. It pained him to put this piece of the puzzle down.

_What else is in here?_

After placing the photograph exactly where he picked it up, Shinji's light swept the room looking for anything else- any other sign of the past he needed. The books were nothing but biology books, and the boxes here were empty. His flashlight swept the desk and stopped as he noticed a picture frame that had tipped over on it's face. Walking to it he reached out and picked it up, holding it to the light.

He hiccuped in surprise.

It was a photo of a boy. Himself.

In his father's office.

"Who's that?" Kensuke asked.

Shinji put the photograph back. "I-I don't know."

_Once upon a time, Shinji had a place in his father's life._

_ But... it was abandoned,_ Shinji realized... like he had been.

* * *

The outside was just as dark as it had been when Shinji and Kensuke entered the building. No men in black or security were rushing out to apprehend them. It was silence and quiet.

They were quiet as they re-gathered their things. Kensuke grabbed his bag and started hiking off. "C'mon," he said, "My camp isn't too far away."

Shinji was still consumed with seeing his own picture in his father's office. Why... why had that been there? Could it be that his father... once upon a time... had missed him? But... that didn't make sense with their current behavior. If they wanted Shinji in their lives, he would be there quartered with them. Not... not here.

Shinji followed his classmate down a road some distance before they turned up an embankment and found a hiking path.

Eventually they came to a clearing where a tent had been pitched. Shinji clicked on the light he had to help Kensuke find the fire pit he had built earlier. The boy got the fire going and the two of them sat beside it.

Shinji stared at the flames in thought. Kensuke, opening a back of snacks, said, "You didn't tell us your parents were in NERV."

Shinji shook his head. "If I did, Suzuhara would have hit me too."

Kensuke stared at Shinji, then shook his head. "He only did that because he thinks Rei is the pilot of the Evangelions. His dad works at NERV, so does mine."

Shinji nodded without looking at Kensuke, "Suzuhara would think I'm a pilot too- I'm the same age as Rei."  
"Are you? A pilot I mean." Kensuke asked.

Shinji didn't answer.

Kensuke grunted and chomped on some of the trail mix he had. "Your mom and dad were in the center of the photograph. Is your dad important at NERV?"  
"I don't know." Shinji replied, _I don't trust Kensuke enough to tell him_. He took a big breath, then sighed, "Please don't tell anyone at school."

"I won't tell Suzuhara, if that's what you mean." Kensuke replied. Sighing, he leaned forward and looked at Shinji as he said, "Please forgive him. He acts on his feelings without thinking and his sister was killed in the first attack when the Evangelion toppled on her school. He's bitter about the Evangelions and NERV, but he has to stay because the only family he has is here."

Shinji nodded. "I-I see." _My only family is here too._

Kensuke's stare was still level at Shinji. Sighing, he said, "I'll keep quiet about this if you keep quiet about my urban exploring. Deal?"

Shinji looked up. "D-Deal."

Kensuke caught that Shinji's attitude had changed. "Do you want to do it again sometime?"

Shinji looked back at the fire. "I-I don't know..." He lowered his head.

Kensuke interrupted Shinji's profound thought to say, "Well, I'd love to have a buddy to go with me to do these things. I know Suzuhara's bored when I can twist his arm into coming with me, and the class rep would rip me a new one if-"

"Hikari?" Shinji asked, suddenly perking, "The class rep?"

"Y-Yeah... that's the class rep." Kensuke said and gave him an odd look, "How could you not know, you've been talking to her every day since you got here! Don't think the rest of us don't see you getting chummy with her."

Shinji blushed in embarrassment. "I-I like talking to her." He said, "I-I don't have many people like that in my life." He lowered his head again, "I know it's her job to be nice to new people, but it made me feel good to talk to her." He closed his eyes and raised his hands to his face. "I wish I could have talked to her today with what happened."

Kensuke saw Shinji suppress a shudder as he hid behind his hands. Reaching around his belt, Kensuke tore his cell phone off the velcro pad and handed it to Shinji. Shinji, looking up from the sound, looked from Kensuke's phone to his face.

"I have her number," He said, "When she helped me with homework a while back. You should call her."

Shinji took the phone and stared at it, then looked at Kensuke, "I don't want to bother her... it's late!"

"You need to get this off your chest." Kensuke said, "I've seen it plenty of times with Touji and he doesn't have anyone to talk to. You do, use it." Kensuke stood up, "I'm gonna go tinkle, take your time."

Kensuke walked away from the fire and Shinji heard the boy unzip his fly. Shinji looked down at the phone.

* * *

The drumming of angry hornets snapped Hikari awake. Groggily she rolled in the bed and tried to wonder what it is. When she realized it was her phone, and remembered why it was on the nightstand, she sat bolt upright and grabbed the phone.

K. AIDA.

A thought of disgust hit her. Why was Kensuke calling when she was waiting on an important call from-

Instantly she realized this could be Shinji using Kensuke's phone.

Before she could realize how illogical that sounded, she answered the phone. She checked herself- the last thing she needed was Kensuke guessing how Hikari felt about Shinji. Taking a breath she said, "I-It's almost midnight Mr. Aida..."

"I-It's me, Shinji." Shinji's voice said.

Hikari felt relief wash over her. "Shinji!" She cried, "My God where are you? D-Doctor Akagi and everyone are looking for you and I was starting to get worried-"  
"I-It's alright!" Shinji managed to eek out, "I-I met up with Kensuke and he let me borrow his phone."

Hikari wondered again how she was right in her initial guess, and suddenly remembered Kensuke's shady trespassing hobby that was rumored at school. Kensuke must have run into Shinji when Shinji had run away... _to hide in an abandoned building for the night?_ She shuddered at the thought of him sleeping under a gritty bridge with nothing but his day clothes. "Where are you?"

"I-I'd rather not say right now." Shinji replied, "I-I just want to talk to you about today. I-It's not too late, is it?"

Hikari grabbed her cell phone with the other hand. She could hear the distress in his tone. "It's fine Shinji. What's going on?"

"It's..." His exhaustion was evident in his tone, "A... long...story... I-I don't know if I can explain it without getting you into trouble."

"Are you working for NERV?" Hikari asked.

Shinji hesitated. "H-How did you-"  
"I told you," Hikari said, smiling a little at Shinji's oversight, "Doctor Akagi from NERV called me. They're looking for you. She has your phone and she's been waiting to hear from you."

Silence for a moment from Shinji's end. He stammered out, "I...I..."

Hikari could hear him crying. "Shinji..." Hikari said, trying to be soothing, "We're all worried about you. Why don't you tell me where you are, so you can come home?"  
"I-I can't go home!" Shinji blasted, "A-All b-because I t-tried to help someone! My parents... everyone at the base is treating me so unfairly all because I wanted to help! Now I can't go home, I have to live with a stranger I don't even like, my things are destroyed, and nobody can help me!"

"Shinji! Calm down," Hikari said earnestly, trying to get control of his upset, "You know that's not true, Doctor Akagi is trying to do the best she can to help you. And..." She clutched the phone, "I'm here... I'm here to listen."

When Shinji had fallen silent, Hikari tried again, "Tell me about who you were trying to help, what happened?"

Shinji sniffed on his end. "I-I don't know... her name is Asuka, she's the first person my age I met here. I-I thought we could be friends, b-but her mom hates me for some reason! Sh-She threatened me and now I can't go home! I-I don't... I don't know what I did."

"Shinji," Hikari said, "She threatened you? Have you talked to the police about it?"

Shinji sniffed. "I-It wouldn't do any good. Her mom is important on the base."

"But that's not fair Shinji." Hikari said, "You have rights, and you should stand up for yourself and contact someone in authority."

"I-I can't! I... I can't do anything."

"That's not true Shinji." Hikari replied firmly, "There are laws in place to help minors." _I know,_ Hikari thought_, because I wanted to help Touji._ Remembering her earlier conversation with Shinji, Hikari went on earnestly, "Hey, if you wanted to meet up tomorrow to get help with school work, how about we look up the laws regarding minors in the workplace, ok?"  
Shinji was quiet for a moment. "I-It's more complicated than that..." He swallowed on his end. Hikari's lips parted to say something but Shinji interrupted her, "I-I wish I could see you."

Hikari felt heat rising in her chest and face. "You can see me tomorrow, I don't have anything scheduled. Right now you need to find someplace to sleep for the night. Doctor Akagi still wants to know where you are."

Shinji sighed. "I-I don't want to go back to... to the place I was going."

"Can Doctor Akagi do anything?"

"I don't know... I didn't think so."

Hikari said, "Well, maybe things are different now. Besides..." She hesitated, then pulled on something she used to try telling Touji, "Take it one day at a time. Even if things are tough, you have people who care about you, and will fight to make things better for you."

Shinji sniffed on the other end. "T-Thank you, Hikari."

Hikari smiled. "It's my pleasure Shinji." She pulled at the fabric on her bed, "Doctor Akagi wanted me to call her in case you got in touch with me. Can I call her to tell her where you are?"

"...Sure." Shinji said.

"And... Shinji..." Hikari said, "I still want to see you tomorrow to help you with your homework, ok? I..." She smiled, "I still haven't started mine. I wanted to work with you so I could get to know you a little better. It's... an old trick of mine to get to know new students."

"I-I'd like that." Shinji replied.

Hikari smiled. "In case I don't hear from you, do you want to meet at the mall at noon?"

"...Where's the mall?"

"You haven't been to the mall?"

"No."

"Well," Hikari said, "Look it up. I can meet you there around 10, if possible?"

"I... I'll try to make it."

"If you can't, that's ok." Hikari said, "Just try to contact me when you can."

"I will. T-Thank you!"

* * *

"Made it pretty far, didn't he?" Shigeru said as the BMW rolled up the forlorn street on the east side of town. Ritsuko looked at the Artificial Evolution Labs annex building as they passed by it. The irony of where he ended up was not lost on Ritsuko.

Maya pointed, "There he is!" Two boys were sitting on the sidewalk under a street lamp. One of them was Shinji.

The little yellow bug pulled up to the sidewalk, doors opening as Maya and Ritsuko were quick to get out. Before Shinji could say anything, Maya enveloped him in a hug and began blathering to him. "Shinji! We were so worried! Why did you run away?"

Kensuke was a little taken aback at this. With friends like these, why was Shinji having problems? Then he saw Doctor Akagi and the seriousness on her face somehow told him the issues he was facing went beyond this small group of people.

"Maya." Ritsuko said. Maya parted from Shinji and sniffed some of her tears back into her face. She stepped backwards as Shigeru approached her.

Shinji was also wiping the tears from his face. He looked up finally to see Ritsuko standing before him. He was unable to look into her eyes as he said, "I-I'm sorry."

"Apology accepted." Ritsuko replied, "Though it really should be Captain Katsuragi that you should apologize to."

Kensuke connected the dots and blinked. He took a step back, startled, from confirmation that Shinji was indeed a pilot.

Shinji didn't say anything, but looked away.

"Do you want to go back?" Ritsuko said.

Shinji's fists balled. "No."

"Then where will you go?" Ritsuko asked.

Shinji squeezed his eyes shut. "I-I don't know. Somewhere."

Ritsuko shook her head as she looked at the boy. Then she knelt in front of him. "Shinji, look at me."

Shinji did so. Ritsuko smiled at him.

"I know the past day has been difficult and traumatic for you." She said, "And I know you're hurting. But doing things like this make it worse, you know?"

Shinji looked away. "I-I Know... I just wanted to clear my head. M-Misato..."

"She can be blunt when she's out of her element. She knows nothing about being a caregiver, but if you give her a chance, perhaps things can be better."

Shinji winced.

"I know," Ritsuko said, "I can doubt her sometimes, too. But at least it's a place to stay until we work something out."

Shinji closed his eyes.

Ritsuko figured this was not getting anywhere. Standing, she figured going back to Misato's place was not the best answer right now. She stood up and looked at Kensuke. "You're Torochi's son, aren't you?"

Kensuke, suddenly under the spotlight of attention, stiffened and saluted out of reflex. "Y-Yes ma'am!"

Ritsuko smiled impishly. "Strange of you to be camping so close to NERV property."

"H-hehe," Kensuke laughed nervously, "M-My dad recommends some great spots!"

"Interesting." Ritsuko replied, "Just be careful not to get too close- there may be things you're better off not knowing. Some knowledge only gets worse when you learn it."

Kensuke swallowed.

Looking between Shinji and Kensuke, Ritsuko reached into her pocket and pulled out Shinji's cell phone. "This is yours."

Shinji took the phone, and looked up at Ritsuko.

"How about this," Ritsuko said, "Would you like to camp out with your new friend tonight? Mister Aida is trustworthy- I know Torochi. I don't know if your parents would accept you sleeping in my office tonight, but I could convince Misato to 'let you' sleep out with a friend tonight."

Shinji blinked. He hated imposing on Kensuke... but the kid had been generous enough to let him back tot his camp. He looked at Kensuke.

The kid smiled and shrugged at Shinji.

Shinji looked back up at Ritsuko.

The Doctor smiled. "Just give me a call tomorrow if you need to be picked up."

Shigeru spoke up, "Shinji, you can call us too." He exchanged glances with Maya, "We're on early shift, but we'll be free later in the afternoon if you need company."

Shinji felt himself tearing up a bit. The concern for him was overwhelming. He wiped his face again. "T-Thank you... thank you everyone!"

* * *

Misato stirred as the phone was ringing. She raised her head from the table, yawned loudly, and realized the phone was in hand. She pressed the answering button, "Hello?"

"We found him." Ritsuko's voice said on the other end. "He's safe and sound with a classmate of his in a park on the north part of town. It seems like they're camping."

"Thank God." Misato grumbled, "The Ikaris would have chewed me out for this if I knew I let him get away."

"Somehow, I doubt it." Ritsuko replied, "They don't seem particularly caring about his happiness. In any event, if anyone asks about him, you need to tell them you allowed Shinji to stay overnight with Kensuke Aida, his classmate, camping."

Misato rubbed her face. "Okay... sounds good." She yawned loudly, "I need to call Kaji."

"Shinji did want to apologize." Ritsuko said, "I told him he has to apologize to you. He seemed to understand."

Misato sobered a little bit. "Really?"

"Yes." Ritsuko said, "Just don't rub it in when he tries."

"I won't." Misato said.

"Promise me?"

Misato smirked. "You really do care about the kid, don't you?"

"Yes," Ritsuko replied, "It seems I do."

"I promise." Misato said and clicked off the phone.


	11. Chapter 11: Testing

**XI. Testing**

Tokyo-3 woke up normally now that almost everyone was back where they should be. Downtown, though, was a mess. Cleanup crews had cordoned off the center of town and were working to clear the massive spilled alien blood. The body of the creature also had to be taken apart.

For everyone else though, life went on. Today was Saturday; fathers and businessmen stayed home to tend to the damages on their homes, or decompress from the stress of the angel attacks in the days previous. For the school children, there was no class today.

But Hikari woke that morning with a mission.

Her sister winced at her as she was jumping in the car. "Are you sure you want to do this?"

"He's a student in my class." Hikari said as she belted herself in, "I want to."

Kodama shook her head. "You gotta be careful with these troubled kids, Hikari. One day you're going to be with one that gets unpredictable."

Hikari side-eyed at Kodama. "You don't know what they've been through. Sometimes they just need someone to talk to..." She looked ahead, "Who won't judge them."

Kodama side-glanced at her sister as they started driving. Looking ahead she said, "When I was class rep, I was wrong about a student only one time. That was enough to teach me that my gut impression is usually right."

Hikari dipped her head, remembering that evening when Kodama came home crying. At the time Hikari didn't know what was going on, but as she got older she had come to learn and understand what had happened.

"Shinji's not like that." Hikari said.

"Sure. Neither was he." Kodama replied.

"Shinji offered to help me clean up the classroom," Hikari replied, "I've seen him concerned for other students, too. He's not like that."

"Ever hear of white knights, Hikari?"

Hikari had. Shaking her head, she asked, "Do you trust anyone?"

"They have to earn it." Kodama replied. "Honestly Hikari, sometimes I think you're too trusting."

Hikari looked ahead, screwing her face tight in determination. "It's my choice to make, Kodama."

Kodama shrugged. "All right..." There was silence for a moment before Kodama sighed, "I just don't want you making a decision you'll regret. You know that, right?"  
"You need to meet Shinji." Hikari said, "He's one of the most mild-mannered people to come in the class. I'm happy to talk to him, and I don't like that he's hurting."

"Just stay in public places, okay?"

"I will." Hikari replied.

As much as she didn't like Kodama's suspicions, she did have a point. But... knowing what she knew of Shinji, Hikari didn't have any reason to think ill of Shinji. Not at present. Not after hearing him on the phone.

* * *

Shinji stirred early in the tent. After swigging some water and looking at the park in the morning sun, he looked at his phone to check the time.

Gathering the last of his things, he was getting ready to leave just as Kensuke was stirring. The boy glanced at his own phone to stop the alarm, sighed and dropped it.

"A-Are you up?" Shinji asked.

"Yeah." Kensuke grunted. He pushed himself up out of the tent, "I just take my time." He looked at Shinji, asking, "You're already packed?"

"I-I didn't want to wake you." Shinji said. He dropped his backpack and asked, "D-Do you need help packing up the camp?"

"Nah" Kensuke said, rolling himself into a sitting position and rubbing his face. "I do this over the weekend sometimes to get away from my dad. He knows I'm out here."

Shinji looked at the fire. Then to Kensuke. "T-Thank you for letting me spend the night."

"No problem." Kensuke replied with a dismissive wave. "Pay me back by saying yes next time I need a hand on an urbexing mission."

Shinji smiled. "I will."

He lingered a little longer to talk to Kensuke before he said goodbye and made his way back to the hiking path. He figured once he reached the road, he could call Hikari, and find out where the mall was. Somehow he'd also have to find a place to shower and clean up- his clothes were at least two days old. While he showered yesterday waking up on the base facilities, he didn't want to go for too long without feeling prepared for the day.

When he reached the street he stopped to look at the derelict building he had investigated last night. Stopping in front of it he looked at the windows, mentally re-tracing his steps and identifying which of the windows belonged to his father's old office.

His hands closed into fists then as he looked into the past. Somewhere in there was a portrait of himself... resting on his father's desk. Turned down and covered in dust. "Why... why did you abandon me...?" Shinji huffed, then barked at the building, "Why!?"

The building was silent.

Frustration was welling in him then and he turned away suddenly and kept walking down the street. This wouldn't do him any good. Getting mad at an emotionless building wouldn't solve any of his problems. But he couldn't help it... the image of his smiling mother was still blaring in his mind. It itched at him. Especially when he contrasted this with how... how she looked... yesterday.

He closed his fists again as he purposefully strode away from the abandoned building. He couldn't help the emotion he was feeling about his predicament. The only thing that had changed since last night, now, was that he knew his parents weren't always this way. That his father had... had once missed him. It didn't make sense.

The building was far behind him as he power-walked away from it and veered into town. He didn't know where the mall was, but he would find out. Maybe..

He pulled out his phone and dialed Hikari.

* * *

Ritsuko had been anticipating a phone call from a number of people this morning. The last one she expected was Rei. "Rei? What can I do for you?"

"I wanted to know where Pilot Ikari was today."

Ritsuko hesitated, since the question suggested a few implications. Ritsuko was not Shinji's keeper... but if even Rei was jumping to that conclusion... she sighed. It occurred to Ritsuko to redirect Rei to the "official" warden of the third child. "Uhm... I... I don't know, have you called Captain Katsuragi?"

"She recommended I contact you."

Ritsuko rubbed the bridge of her nose. Of course. "Shinji hasn't contacted me this morning, but last I heard he was spending the night with a friend. Aida, Kensuke. You can try him, or you can try contacting my senior technician Maya Ibuki, they may have heard from Shinji sooner than I."

"Thank you." Rei said and promptly hung up. Ritsuko stared at the phone before putting her desk phone back on the receiver. Staring at it, she took in the peculiarity of all of that.

"Why does she want to talk to Shinji?" Ritsuko asked aloud. She finally gathered her things and started from the office. It occurred to her then that perhaps...

...did Rei want to thank Shinji for saving her life?

* * *

Hikari had no choice but to leave the books on the table as she dashed outside with her phone. She hoped they'd still be there when she got back- at least she left her backpack. "Shinji! Good morning, did you sleep well?"

"I...uh... sorta." Shinji replied, "H-How about you?"

Hikari smiled warmly, but then checked her thinking and sucked in a breath. "I'm fine, I'm at the city library before I headed over to the mall. I've started looking into legal rulings regarding minors, trying to find something to help you."

In truth Hikari had done much of this research already. She had been discreetly looking into what it would take to help Touji gain his own independence from his family... perhaps find some respite by escaping the city. But now she was more motivated to help Shinji out his predicament, and there were some avenues of knowledge she hadn't explored.

Shinji paused on his end for long enough to make Hikari check her phone. "Shinji?"

"I-I don't know what to say."

Hikari leaned against the side of the building. "Shinji, you need to know you're not completely powerless. If the situation isn't bearable where you are, you should look at the power to change it. Nobody is ever without agency."

"I-I don't know..."

It occurred to Hikari that maybe what Shinji needed wasn't legal council. He wasn't exactly leaning into the situation. Adjusting her posture against the building she asked, "have you had something to eat yet?"

Shinji's pause wasn't as long. He sighed. "N-No I haven't."

"How about we meet at the mall and get something to eat." Hikari said, "Where are you?"

After a pause, he stated the street.

"I don't know where that is." Hikari said, and started pacing, "If you can catch the bus lines they have directories on the line... yeah, you know. There's a starbucks at the mall at least if you want something for breakfast."

"Uh... that sounds good!" Shinji replied, "Though um..."

"Yeah?"  
"Do you know someplace where I could get a shower?"

Hikari nodded. "There's a sports club attached to the mall. We can go there after we're done with breakfast."

* * *

Asuka got a call to head to the base early today.

It was not unusual, no doubt Her Mother had something else she wanted to do. Maybe it was to test the Evangelion as soon as repairs were complete, so she could Bring Up Her Synch Scores.

No matter. Her exams had been completed, she had lecture to listen to today but she supposed it could wait. It was one of the few, fortunate times her schedule was open in the morning for her to do this.

After the long guilty walk away from the apartment complex she shared with Shinji just days ago she made it to the cages.

She powered through changing, not bothering to look at the third locker. She motivated herself to get the suit on, pushed herself out of the changing block, and motivated herself to report to the office between her Evangelion and Shinji's.

She came to a stop as she saw Doctor Akagi standing on her side of the Cages office, above the german technicians which typically oversaw her synch tests. Behind her, further down the line, was her mother. Ritsuko looked up at Asuka. "Asuka," She said as she approached, "I appreciate you coming over this early. Your Evangelion is repaired, but I wanted to finish things out with a static test to make sure everything is operational."

Asuka noticed that her mother was busy with the equipment. Asuka looked between the doctor and her mother. "I... I understand."

Ritsuko nodded and said under her breath, "Get to the plug before she notices."

Asuka didn't hesitate, hurrying down the steps and rounding the corner of the offices. From there it was a steep set of stairs up, then a walkway over the bay windows of the office to get to the docking apparatus behind the Eva's neck.

Ritsuko had turned and walked back to the bank of computer terminals along the long glass-lined hallway. Kyoko was already staring at Ritsuko, but Ritsuko ignored it to walk up to Maya's instrument panel. "Start the procedures for the static test."

Minutes passed as Asuka was getting into the cockpit of the Evangelion.. The German crews continued through the static testing procedure.

Kyoko finally came over to Ritsuko. "You were particularly eager to lecture me on the performance limitations of the Evangelions this past week, Akagi. Funny to see you change your tune."

Ritsuko answered without looking at Kyoko. "I am only doing my job. Whenever the inner core areas of an Evangelion have been penetrated I want to be sure all systems are functioning as they should. Especially when Asuka's hit exceeded previous pain tolerance limits on the M-M interface."

"That system is my responsibility."

"Not on the technical side." Ritsuko replied, turning to Kyoko, "I know how to do my job, doctor. And I want to have the hard data to present to Doctor Ikari." She turned back to the monitors, not caring if Kyoko was stewing over the subtle shade thrown her way.

"Besides," Ritsuko added, "Evangelions are as advanced as the human body, Doctor. Without precise tuning and adjustments, we increase the risk of something disastrous happening."

After all, how can anyone forget Evangelion 00 going berserk?

Ritsuko could hear Kyoko puffing up even without looking. "Evangelion 02 is the most advanced unit on the premises." Kyoko said, "And therefore, the most stable. I-"

"I will be the judge of that, Doctor." Ritsuko said, paying attention to the instruments as she spoke. Finally she turned to face Kyoko. "Our mission today is to make technical assessments of the Evangelion now that it is fully repaired. The only reason the pilot is here is to test the Evangelion in its minimal operational state." Ritsuko looked at the displays.

Kyoko's arms were crossed. "If all the pilot does is sit in the cockpit, why am I needed here?"

Ritsuko answered her, "Since you were present for every previous Evangelion 02 activations, I figured you would want to be present to monitor the second children."

"...While she isn't doing anything."

"Precisely." Ritsuko replied, "Unless of course, you have better things to do."

Kyoko glared at Ritsuko's dead level stare, then looked at the instruments. After a moment of hearing the startup procedures, Kyoko spoke something in german to one of the officers, before whirling and leaving the office without further comment to Ritsuko.

Doctor Akagi, noticing, smiled to herself. She reached out to grab a headset while Asuka was being inserted into the Evangelion. Once she was in, Ritsuko activated the headset and spoke into it. "Asuka? This is Doctor Akagi. We have a small change of plans, your vitals today will be monitored by Otto. I don't foresee any serious changes, just sit tight."

Ritsuko had called out the officer Kyoko had spoken to. Otto Helmut was the chief operations officer for Evangelion 02 and lead of the German technical team present to manage Eva 02. Ritusko knew his loyalties were to Kyoko, but at least Ritsuko could count on his impartiality. It would be different if Maya was monitoring the results.

Asuka didn't reply at all to the SOUND ONLY transmission.

Ritsuko smiled. She knew Asuka couldn't be convinced that easily. "We'll be monitoring your synchronization scores as we conduct the test. Just keep in mind, this is the only opportunity we have to observe you when your mother isn't around. Do you copy?"

"...I copy." The redhead replied.

Ritsuko could also see her expression on the slight jump in synch scores.

* * *

It would be a mistake to dismiss Kensuke Aida as just a military otaku, as many did in his class. Even his best friend, Touji, would rib him about this. But there was a lot that Kensuke kept away from people... mostly because he didn't know how they would be taken.

With Shinji gone, Kensuke resumed his weekend mission while he was here: Scaling Mount Ashigara. The wooded areas were difficult to get through as he went cross-country, hiking up in order to get as high as he could. It had taken him nearly all morning to find a clearing on the side of the mountain where he could stop and open up his bag, producing a high-powered lens scope and a tripod.

Setting it up, he coated the lens with reflection-diminishing liquid before he trained the lens into the distance and started observing. He shortly pulled out a pen and paper and started writing down in it as he sat on the ground.

His cell phone rang.

He pulled it out, glanced at the number on the caller ID and ignored it. He resumed observing.

It buzzed again.

He glanced at it- the same number. He ignored it again... who was trying to call him?

Kensuke picked up on the third try. "Hello? Who is this?"

"Mister Aida." The voice said, "You were last reported with Shinji Ikari. I would like to know his whereabouts."

Kensuke blinked and stared into space for a while. Was this... NERV police? No, Doctor Akagi had taken care of that. So who the hell was calling him? "Who is this?"

"...This is Ayanami."

Fucking...Rei? "Rei? Since when did you care about talking to other people?" Rei didn't say anything for a moment. "Hello?" Kensuke asked.

"I am here. I want to know where... Ikari is."

Kensuke sighed. "Ah, why the hell not." He adjusted his seat on the ground and said, "Shinji asked me where the mall was earlier today. I gave him some directions, I'd guess that's where he is."

"Thank you." Rei said and hung up.

"What... hey! The hell?" Kensuke called into the phone. He sighed in indignation, closed the phone, and looked at the paperwork in his hands. "Oh fuck..."

By taking the call he had signaled his position. He grunted as he tore out the pages and ripped them up, then started to pack up his things again. "Fucking Rei ruining everything..."

Why the hell had she called? That was unusual. All Ayanmi ever did was sit and looked bored. This was the first time he heard her actually interested in talking to someone.

* * *

When Shinji went looking for "The mall", he was directed to one of the strangest places he had been. "The Mall" wasn't an above-ground building as he would have expected. Instead, after descending a very wide staircase he came face-to-face with a large black sign placard that identified this place as "The Tokyo-3 Metro-Mall". After he looked at it for a moment he realized what was going on.

The entire mall area had been built underground, beneath the city sprawl above them. It was far enough from some of the telescoping high-rises that it wouldn't interfere with them, yet it was deep enough to be a two-story structure.

It wasn't sparsely attended, either. Plenty of people were flowing into the mall on business of their own. As Shinji walked onward, wondering why people would shop here, he took note of what the store fronts were offering. It wasn't just fancy clothes and jewelry, but some of the technology on display seemed unlike anything he had known when he lived with his relatives.

Once he made his way to the food court he came to face the most egregious display of modern technology he had ever seen. Hovering in the air at the center of the food court was a large holographic map of the Earth. It appeared like three images inset into one another; a yellow grid, nested around a flat map in red and further illustrated by a contour display in blue.

He stared at it for a while as he stood at the base of it, turning away only when he heard his name called. Shinji turned and saw Hikari approaching with a wave. He smiled as he faced her and took her in; instead of the blue school outfit she had changed into a black dress decorated with winding yellow sunflowers. She had a necklace on, though her hair was still partitioned in the pigtails.

Stopping beside him she asked, "Is this your first time seeing The World?"

"I-Is that... what they call it?" Shinji asked as he looked back up at it.

Hikari nodded. "It's one of the major tourist attractions here." After a moment of staring she said, "Come on, let's get some food."

* * *

Asuka was bored in the cockpit. Out of that curiosity she opened a channel to Doctor Akagi, in part to snoop to see if her mother was indeed gone. She asked, "Doctor, what is this test supposed to accomplish?"

"We need data from the static test following the repair work." Doctor Akagi replied, "In theory your Evangelion is functional, though we need full test data to confirm. It's a good thing you contacted me, we're about to begin some sensor tests. Do you remember where you were hit by the Angel in the last sortie?"

Asuka absently rubbed her back against the padded seat. The impact had hit her square in the right shoulder. "I remember."

"We're testing that area." Ritsuko said, "Pay attention to that area as we start the examination."

Asuka squared her shoulders and leaned away from the seat. "Ready."

In the office, Ritsuko nodded to Maya. "Beginning surface tests," Maya was saying, "Starting in area 4A-C."

Ritsuko meanwhile was monitoring the synchronization ratios, and made some notes. Already Asuka's base performance was a hairline above normal... maybe knowing her mother wasn't supervising these tests was enough to read on the chart. There needed to be some more in-depth analysis, however, if she was to make her case that the largest variable impacting her performance was indeed, her mother. And her mother's methods.

But it needed to be a technical angle.

Maya started, "Beginning in Area 4A-D."

Ritsuko leaned forward, "Asuka, please tell us if you feel any sensation."

"No doctor, I don't. Not there." Asuka replied.

Maya looked at Ritsuko. Doctor Akagi leaned forward to examine the area. Maya shook her head, "It's that nerve cluster. It was a little slow on regeneration, but not in the alarm area. The neuro-transmitters may not be firing due to malformation."

Ritsuko was trying to estimate if this was a problem or not. "Flag that node and keep testing." Ritsuko replied. The Evangelions could self-heal at an incredible rate, aided with outside assistance. But not all the healing had brought the Evangelion back to original levels. Scar tissue could disrupt things, but Ritsuko had to be careful that it was _just_ scar tissue.

Maya continued the tests. "Beginning in area 4A-E."

* * *

Shinji was self-conscious over breakfast at the fact that he haddn't washed this morning. It was even worse after a night of exploring dusty asbestos-covered ruins. It was all because Hikari was sitting across from him at the small table, less than an arm's length away.

He was happy though, to have her here.

"So," Hikari began as she handled the tea she had ordered, "I know a little bit about your background Shinji, since I got to look at the records, and from what you told me." She nodded, "But I think this is the first time you and I sat down to have a talk like this. You're from Shirakawa?"

"My uncle lives there, yeah." Shinji replied. Looking at Hikari he nodded and said, "Yeah, it's the middle of nowhere."

"No wonder you didn't have internet access." Hikari said.

"It's not THAT remote, it's just that my uncle and aunt's computer was password locked and I wasn't allowed to touch it." Shinji replied, "They didn't think I needed it."

"Weird."

"Yeah. My classmates did, but I didn't."

Hikari fiddled with her hands before she asked the next question. "So... your parents are here, but you lived with your aunt and uncle?"

Shinji stopped eating and his look went distant.

"I-I'm sorry," Hikari said, "I shouldn't have-"

"No... it's fine..." Shinji said, breathing. "It's... it's fine."

Hikari hesitated. "Are you sure?"

Shinji swallowed and said, "M-My mother took me to my uncle... her brother... when I was six. They told me it was because she and my... my dad had... had work to do that was important. That was... seven years ago.

Hikari nodded as she followed along.

Shinji shook his head. "I... I hated it, at first. Hated them. After a while though I... I guess I started to get over it. My aunt and uncle never treated me like a son or anything... just like... a tenant. They always treated me like an adult... It seemed to me like they never wanted kids, so they never treated me like one."

Hikari was nodding. "You seem very mature for your age, I figured it was something like that."

Shinji didn't know what to say to that, he just shook his head and went on, "Honestly I didn't think I would ever see them again. Not... not until I was through university or something, and could look them up when I was on my own. N-Now that... that they have me here..."

The pictures came to mind again. He raised up a hand to rub his face as he tried to hold back the emotion.

"Hey," Hikari said, reaching across the table to put a hand on his shoulder. She didn't know what more to say, and recalled her hand as Shinji sniffed and lowered his own hand back to the table.

"I... I just..." Shinji stammered as he tried to make sense of his feelings and hold back the tears that welled in his eyes. "I don't know what to ask of them. I'm finally here, but they force me to live separate from them. They... they have me doing this job for them... but..."

Hikari blinked. "It sounds like you're more an employee than their son." She leaned forward, "Shinji... I... I know a few things," he eyes scanned the wooden table, "About gaining independence from your parents if you need it."

"I... I don't know." Shinji replied, too consumed in his own feelings to note Hikari's hesitance. He didn't look at her, but Hikari examined him, seeing his turmoil.

"Your parents still matter to you."

Shinji found himself nodding before he could think about it, his gaze sweeping the floor. "I-I don't know why. M-Maybe... maybe I... I miss the way things were."

Hikari shook her head. "It's not wrong to want family, Shinji." Her eyes dipped to the table also. "I can't tell you how often I miss my mother... and what... what she'd say of us now." Hikari looked back up to Shinji. "When we lost Nozomi I leaned hard on my family because I didn't have anyone else to turn to. I'm sorry to hear it seems like you didn't. You don't have any siblings?"

Shinji shook his head but stopped as his eyes befell on someone. Hikari spun in her seat, seeing his surprise. She was likewise surprised herself. "Rei?"

Rei Ayanami was approaching their table.

* * *

Asuka waited in the cockpit, still. A half hour had gone by.

She just had to wait as the probes continued to play across her back. She had laid herself back along the command couch, arms splayed, and just waited to feel sensation. 'yes' or 'no' answers were easy as the invisible prods were poking her back.

"Set complete." Maya said.

"Hold for a moment Asuka," Ritsuko said, "We need to calibrate the sensors based on our data. We'll need you to standby while we do so. Sit tight and await our instructions."  
"Understood." Asuka replied. She closed her eyes.

The humming was comforting. As she listened she could hear the slight variations in the vibration... almost as if it were singing to her. She started to breathe normally and let her mind drift now that she had nothing to do. Her thoughts started to clear like parting clouds.

She wondered about Shinji.

The dip in guilt was there, as she expected it to be, but she tried to righten it with reason and logic. Shinji was intelligent, smart, and capable. She knew all of this when he came to her apartment with dinner. His level of compassion was marred a little by his presumptuousness... he just _assumed_ that she would want to eat something else, and made that meal _assuming_ she would be grateful for it...

But...

His compassion had been welcome. Especially as the rest of the base, up until now, had been content with leaving Asuka to her mother's charge. As she thought about it, her mother had done a good job isolating her from everyone.

Today... though... right now. She was alone. She was with the people whom had been getting close to Shinji, or so she had seen and heard whispered through the base as she had gone about her day.

The moments turned into full minutes, and longer, as her mind continued to drift over the abstract concepts. Finally she just lay in the entry plug, listening to the hum of the cockpit before she lost track of time.

* * *

Ritsuko noticed the synchronization fluctuation first. "Maya," She said, "Please interdict all transmissions to the entry plug until I say otherwise."

Maya looked at Ritsuko in confusion before glancing at Asuka's profile. "Done... is she asleep?"

"I think she is." Ritsuko said, "Start recording this data immediately. I don't think we've ever recorded anything like this before."

Maya did as she was told. The monitors were displaying Asuka's sleeping face as her synchronization scores were steadily climbing. Ritsuko, glancing down the row of technicians, noticed the German crews were taking note of this too. Some were glancing at Ritsuko.

Doctor Akagi ignored them and leaned forward over Maya's console. Maya reported, "Her synchronization score is passing 38.5%."

Ritsuko nodded. "Good girl Asuka. All right, let's start another round of passive tests while we can. Let's let her sleep for now while we prepare this. Maya, set a timer for twenty minutes."

* * *

Of course Rei was welcome to sit with them.

"Thank you." She had said and sat down at a chair she had moved herself, sitting at the table.

She just stared at the two of them. Shinji and Hikari exchanged glances, before looked at Rei. "Ah..." Hikari said, settling into her class rep role, "What can we do for you, Rei?"

Rei looked down to think, before looking at Shinji. "Ikari."

"Y-Yeah?"

"...I do not understand why you acted to confirm my safety. I was in no danger." Rei said.

Hikari looked to Shinji, and Shinji thought back to the last time he had seen Rei. _In the plug_. It felt like a lifetime ago. "Ah..."

Hikari's glance went between Shinji and Rei. "Rei... Shinji was concerned about you. So was I... as your class rep I had to intervene."

Rei lowered her head. "I am not referring to the incident with Suzuhara."

Hikari looked at Rei and then back at Shinji. "What's she talking about?"

Shinji shook his head. "I... I don't know how much I can say about it."

Hikari blinked, staring at Shinji. Her eyes widened a little as she started to guess what it might have been. "Do you... mean sometime out of class?" Hikari glanced at Rei, then she looked at Shinji, "When did this happen? Sometime at... at NERV?"

"Y-Yeah!" Shinji replied, finding a way out, "Y-Yeah it... it was at work, during the angel attack!"

Hikari stared. "What's an Angel?"

Rei looked from Hikari to Shinji and then back again. "That information is classified."

Hikari looked from Rei to Shinji. Then she leaned forward, "What do you do at NERV?"  
Shinji couldn't answer. Rei said, "That information is classified."

"Are... you both pilots?" Hikari asked.

"That information is classified."

"Shinji-!"

"Yes!" He hissed, looking around, "Keep it down!" He said, looking at her.

Hikari blinked at her fringe suspicion being suddenly made true. "You... you both are..."

Shinji couldn't look at her. Knowing that her sister was... was killed by the Evangelions.

Hikari looked at the two of them again, then took a big breath and let it out. "Rei," She said, "You know by saying it's classified you're basically confirming that it's true, right?" She rolled her head to look at Rei, "You need to learn something called tact."

Rei blinked. "What is... tact?"

"I... I couldn't tell you." Shinji said, "I'It's not just because it's secret. It..." Shinji finally looked up. "Your sister. I'm... I'm..."

Hikari sighed and leaned back in her chair. She took a moment before she said, "When Nozomi died I was really mad at the pilots. Furious, even, that their carelessness resulted in so many people being killed. I thought they were battle hardened veterans trained to fight... and make war..." she looked down at her hand that she let dangle off the side of her chair. Then she looked at Rei, then Shinji. "It's different now that I know it's... kids... us. I don't think I could have done better if I was put in a position to... to fight in those things. I can't imagine what it must be like for you. Besides," She lowered her head, "It's like blaming a natural disaster. You wouldn't have to fight if these things weren't coming for us."

Shinji was already starting to freak out that Hikari knew. He swallowed... maybe... maybe it would be okay. Hikari could understand keeping things secret. "I... Suzuhara..."

Hikari blinked and sighed again. "You don't have to worry about him, Shinji. Neither you Rei," Hikari said as an aside to Rei, who blinked in confusion. Hikari looked back at Shinji. "Your secret is safe with me, if it helps. I promise."

Shinji swallowed, and smiled a little nervously.

Hikari smiled back, then nodded. "You should eat your breakfast before it gets too cold."

* * *

In the cages, once that twenty minutes was up, Ritsuko got back on the comm with Asuka. "Asuka... Asuka!"

The second child stirred. "W-What?"

"You fell asleep." Ritsuko replied, "We'll need you for the next round of tests. Take a minute to wake up, and then we'll get started."

Asuka yawned and stretched.

"By the way," Doctor Akagi said, "You may be interested to know your synchronization scores are currently at 41.5%."

Asuka stopped. "What?"

"It was higher when you were asleep." Ritsuko replied, "You even passed Shinji for a bit. You currently hold the highest record for synchronization scores."

Asuka didn't know how to feel. Her mother had been driving her hard- pressing her for that all important synchronization score. And all that needed to happen for her scores to increase was to _sleep_?

That had been impossible with her mother here though. Constantly goading her.

Asuka blinked as she tried to absorb that knowledge.

Ritsuko spoke again, "Are you ready for our next round of tests Asuka?"

"Y-Yes!" Asuka replied, leaning forward and grabbing the butterfly handles.

_She did better_. _Better without her mother here._ Maybe, Asuka thought, she could have more of this in the future without her mother riding her.

_Something to use against my mother._

* * *

What surprised Shinji the most, after breakfast, was Rei following them. Hikari haddn't questioned it at all, and the three of them crossed the busy interior space, continuing the conversation more or less from before. As they walked Shinji kept glancing at Rei to try determining why she was coming with them.

"So," Hikari said, "From what I understand you telling me, Asuka's mom is treating Asuka like some kind of trophy. Her daughter's success is yoked to her success, so she won't abide anyone interfering with her daughter because that would hurt her precious little perfect daughter."

Shinji haddn't put those dots together and stopped himself before he disputed her conclusion. Nodding, he was about to think aloud when Rei interrupted him. "That is an accurate assessment."

Hikari sighed. "I've seen a few students with this kind of domestic home arrangement, but not like this. Are you sure there isn't anything you can do? It sounds to me like there has to be someone to talk to to get her in trouble about this."

Shinji shook his head. "I don't know..." He supposed he could review the green book of regulations. Perhaps that might have something.

Hikari turned, "Any ideas, Rei? Could Shinji appeal to someone in authority?"

Shinji blinked and looked at Rei as the girl replied, "The particulars of NERV interior structure are classified. However... it may be possible to make certain appeals to authority figures."

Shinji blinked. Did... did she just imply that she would talk to _his parents?_

They were closing in on the gym anyway. When they got to the gate Shinji flashed his ID badge and was waived in without a fee. He showered quickly.

When he returned, he was still surprised to see Rei present, but she was actually in a conversation with Hikari. "I don't understand it either, honestly." Hikari was saying, looking up as Shinji was approaching.

Shinji stopped. "What?"

"Nothing." Hikari replied as she stood. "We were talking about boys."

"...huh?"

Rei said, "Hikari was telling me about her experiences with male ego rituals."

"...what?"

"Never mind." Hikari replied, stepping up to Shinji, "I'll bet you feel better after that."  
"Y-Yeah!"

Hikari smiled, then said, "Well, now that you've eaten and showered, what would you like to do? I was at the library earlier... I'd still love to help you figure out what to do for our class assignment."

That reminded Shinji of the day they were assigned the topic. And how Rei left it behind. "Ah... Rei! You left your assignment on the desk!"

Rei blinked in confusion.

Hikari looked at Rei. "Now that I mention it, I don't think I've seen any assignments from you Rei."

Rei blinked still, looking at Hikari. "I did not consider these assignments mandatory."

Shinji looked at Hikari. "Yeah um... are they even graded?"

"Hey," Hikari said and pointed, "I do a lot of hard work making sure all the assignments are graded and reviewed."

"Okay, okay!" Shinji replied, waiving his hands, "It's just... all of the instructor's lectures are really... um..."

Hikari deflated. "Okay, I'll only say this because we're out of class but," She looked at Shinji, "I find his lectures boring and unnecessary too. But it's school, we're there to learn and do our thing."

"Are we?" Shinji asked, "I'm serious, I keep wondering why we're there if we never learn anything new." He looked at Rei as he continued, "It's just more of his lectures about his past and why we should keep the human race going or something."

Rei blinked. "The purpose of school is classified."

Both Shinji and Hikari sighed. "Rei," Hikari said, "If there's some super secret about our classroom, and somehow is connected to NERV, you should try saying something like, 'gee, that's weird.' If you tell us it's classified then we know something is up!"

Rei blinked. "But that is the truth."

Shinji said, "Rei, you shouldn't feel compelled to tell the truth all the time. It could get us in trouble."

Rei paused. "It can? How would it violate our conduct regulations?"

Hikari looked at Shinji and said, "I'm probably going to find out all about this organization inadvertently with Rei, aren't I?"

Shinji laughed nervously because she was probably right.

* * *

After two hours, the Evangelion had completed the testing and repair work.

Maya was summarizing. "The repairs are effectively completed, but additional tissue stimulation was necessary around the affected area to make sure nerve development was complete. Evangelion 02 is operational, plus we have some interesting synchronization data on unconscious pilots. Asuka's also broken her test records."

"Good." Ritsuko said, then looked through the large glass at the Evangelion. "Asuka, we're finished here. I have a few questions for you when you come out, can you wait by the plug when you come out?"

"...okay." Asuka replied.

Ritsuko's hand rested on Maya's shoulder. "Finish up down here, I'm going to talk to her. After that, you're free to meet your man for a late lunch if you like."

"Okay... " Maya replied, blushing a little. Then she turned away from the computers to call to Ritsuko, "Good luck!"

Ritsuko found Asuka as commanded, sitting on the side of the ejected entry plug as it was handled by the gantry. The deck had been cleared by now, only Asuka remained. A backpack had been thrown on the ground next to the plug, and Asuka had a book open when Ritsuko arrived. Asuka raised her head to look at Ritsuko as the doctor approached, and started to lean up when Ritsuko raised a hand. "Don't get up." Her hand went outward, "May I see?"

Asuka presented the book to Ritsuko, who took it with both hands as she held her own tablet under her arm. She examined the book. "Biochemistry?"

"Yes, level three." Asuka replied.

"I see." Ritsuko replied, handing the book back. "Do you like it?"

Asuka looked down at the book for a moment to consider her reply. "It's all right."

Ritsuko turned around to lean against the plug next to her. "When I was younger I remember your mother liked to correct everyone else's mistakes and show off her scientific aptitude. While I shouldn't be surprised she drives you hard, I suppose the rest of us hoped parenthood would mellow that tendency."

Asuka took a breath in. "Doctor Akagi... I know you're trying to help, but this really isn't any of your business."

Ritsuko closed her eyes. "No, it's not. However," Ritsuko opened her eyes and glanced at Asuka, "Shinji has become a concern of mine, and like it or not, you have direct influence over what happens to him."

Asuka put the bookmark in her book and lowered it to lean against the side of the plug. After a moment she said, "I didn't ask for Shinji to be put away."

"But you have more leverage then you give yourself credit for." Ritsuko said, "Even agreeing to these tests is a way to help Shinji, because it shows your mother is being reckless and unstable. She's using her authority to hurt people- you included. And it has to stop."

Asuka's fists clenched. "If my mother found out you were saying these things to me..." She didn't finish, looking away.

Ritsuko blinked. "I understand. Just as you also understand that your mother is going to interrogate you when you see her next, to learn how the test went. Naturally she'll pull the medical records as well. She may find out that you fell asleep in the plug."

Asuka looked up at Ritsuko. "Are you threatening me, Doctor?"

Ritsuko blinked. She closed her eyes and shook her head. "No. Of course I won't tell her. But to advance the case to help Shinji, I want to establish that your synchronization scores were higher than at any point in the previous few weeks."

Ritsuko finally brought the tablet out from her arm. "Here, these are your scores."

Asuka took them and looked at the tablet. "Am I allowed to look at these?"

"I see a benefit discussing these with you, in a post-analysis interview we're conducting now." Ritsuko replied. Nodding at the template she said, "Please compare your tests before and after Shinji's arrival a few days ago."

Asuka tapped through the data. She had forgotten her performances in the earlier tests... and was relieved to see how far she had improved though. Her biggest jump, however, was this very test. She looked up at Ritsuko.

"For the record," Ritsuko asked, "What do you think accounts for your massive improvement in your synchronization scores?"

Asuka looked down at the template. She fought with herself on how to present this.

Her mother would not be happy. It could draw dire consequences.

_There will always be consequences. Even if you did nothing wrong. Even if he did nothing wrong._

_But what could she say?_

Asuka sucked in a breath. "I attribute my positive scores to the presence of a powerful, reinforcing element. This element coincides with Shinji Ikari's appointment to being the second child. Prior to this day my highest score was a direct result of his visiting my apartment to... to check on my health- the powerful feeling of camaraderie was a strong, positive reinforcement." Asuka couldn't help smiling. "I haven't had a meal that wonderful in a long time."

Ritsuko nodded. "Thank you. This will help, a lot. Now," She turned, "Let's get that in an official statement."

* * *

While Shinji had agreed to the idea of studying for class, they didn't start immediately. As they walked back to the food court, Hikari had noticed Shinji getting side-tracked on looking at the clothing stores. He was forced to admit his state of dress, which made Hikari stop. "Well of course we need to get you more clothes. C'mon."

She pulled Shinji into the clothing store, which began a two hour extravaganza of looking at different clothing and wear. While Hikari wasn't overbearing, she was relentless, offering opinions on different things and suggesting different pieces to try.

At the end of it, as Lunchtime was coming up, Shinji ended up with two more sets of clothes to wear, a new pair of shoes, and a duffel bag to hold it all. Hikari was carrying it as they returned to the food court- Shinji was wearing one of the new outfits.

Through the whole process Rei had been watching with interest- not quite like a student studying for an exam, but more like a child fascinated with animals at the zoo. As they walked to the food court Rei's mind was clearly thinking over what she was experiencing.

"So," Hikari was saying as they entered the food court, "The assignment is supposed to be talking about an aspect of life lost or changed during the second impact. When you think about it, sensei's topics do make sense, huh?"

Shinji bobbed his head, unable to disagree. "I guess... But... how are we supposed to answer that question?"

"We do research." Hikari said, moving to one of the seats and taking it. Shinji slid opposite of her into the bench seat, and Rei sat beside Hikari. The class rep went on, "The way I sometimes address these topics in a group session is to talk about them and try to find out things we're interested in."

Shinji shook his head. "None of us were alive before the second impact. So... what?"

Hikari settled back in her chair. "Well... we can throw out different topics and see if there's one we want to talk about. I'll start: Morning commutes."

Shinji shook his head. "Nah... how about... food?"

"Food? That's a broad topic. What else?"

Rei volunteered, "International relations."

Shinji and Hikari were both shaking their heads. Hikari said, "Maybe if Kensuke was here, but..."

"I still think food is a good idea." Shinji said.

"Okay, food then." Hikari said. Her stomach gurgled just then. "Speaking of which, we should get some."

They all looked around the food court then, trying to find places that stood out to comment on them. Shinji didn't see much he liked. "All of it's fast food."

"What's wrong with that?"

He shook his head. "I don't like plastic, packaged stuff. It's too fake. I'd rather cook at home."

Hikari turned to him, enthused, "You cook?"  
"Y-yeah," Shinji replied, "At my uncle's place... he couldn't. I got tired of the prepackaged crap he would get and just started making meals for the household. So I cook everything at home. Since my aunt liked American meals, that's what I know the most of."

"Oh, you know American!" Hikari chimed, "My sister Kodama's wanted to have American to eat forever and one of my chores today was grocery shopping. Hey, maybe after lunch we can go do that, so you can help me pick out something she'd like?"

"Er..." Shinji said, "I... I mean, I could cook it too. If you didn't mind having me over."

Hikari perked. "That would be great! That also saves me the trouble of trying to figure it out!"

Rei spoke then. "May I attend also?"

Hikari turned to Rei. "S-Sure... why not?"

"Does this bother you?"

"N-No... I'm just..." Hikari said. She started over, "You never seemed interested in socializing before Rei, so it's... it's unexpected."

Rei looked at the table, almost perplexed herself. "I do not know why... but I want to continue sharing the day with you. This is... pleasing."

Shinji and Hikari exchanged glances, then Hikari looked to Rei. "Well, we're happy to have you along Rei. Assuming," Hikari looked up, "We can figure out what to eat for lunch."


End file.
